Asheville Beer Blog

Pouring One Out for Bruisin' Ales

2020-01-10T23:43:00.000-05:00

Merriam-Webster defines libation as an act of pouring liquid as a sacrifice (as to a deity). This was the precursor to our more modern take of pouring a little liquid gold (or a forty-ounce) onto the ground in honor of things we have lost. Well, I am about to empty the refrigerator. After 13 years, Bruisin' Ales has announced that they will be closing their beer store downtown.

Things were much different in Asheville 13 years ago. My predecessor for this blog, Mark, had just started the Asheville Beer Blog. It had only been a year since North Carolina "Popped the Cap" eliminating it's archaic 6% ABV law. Locally, I was getting beer at the Weinhaus downtown, or Greenlife, but really I had to drive out of state to find any real selection of beer, especially for my precious Belgians. I distinctly remember daydreaming about opening a beer store myself. Then one day I discovered I didn't have too. After hearing about the store opening on this very blog, I finally got around to going inside to see what all the fuss was about.

And there it was. The wall. As a lover of Belgian beer, I was in heaven. La Chouffe? Saison Dupont? St. Bernadus? Orval? Westmalle? The occasional Fantome? And sometimes the rare Cantillon? Yep, you could find it here. It was Disneyland for a Belgian beer lover like me. But there was more. Bruisin' Ales immediately integrated themselves with the local beer culture. They were the first to feature tastings of local and regional beers. They were the first to host beer dinners. They were instrumental in fertilizing the nascent beer scene in Asheville. There wouldn't have been an Asheville Beer Week without the hard work that Jason and Julie Atallah did to push the idea that we were a national beer destination. But there was more.

I was just a guy who loved beer, and thought enough of the Asheville beer scene that I felt compelled to write about what was going on here. Jason and Julie supported my interest, and opened up a number of great experiences that I will always cherish. Many a beer celebrity came to Asheville for tastings and other events, and Brusin' Ales was a huge part of that. I have had so many great beer moments, some awesome food and beer dinners, and rubbed elbows with brewers from across the U.S. and the world, including having a late night beer with Sam Calagione of Dogfish fame. And this was all due to the hard work and dedication of the folks at Bruisin'.

But the most important part of Bruisin' Ales legacy to me is the friendships that I have made. Jason and Julie are great people, and I am proud to call them my friends. Through Bruisin' Ales, I have also established many friendships in Asheville and beyond, and I will cherish that forever.

Going back to our definition of libation, I am definitely going to pour a little out. I'm not much on deities, but Bruisin' Ales is on the short list of the most important things to ever happen to Asheville beer. I want to thank Bruisin' Ales for their contribution to Beer City. Without them, I don't think that Asheville would be the beer destination that it is today.

Asheville Beer Week Returns

2013-03-30T11:32:00.004-04:00

It's been a rather exciting time for Western North Carolina beer over the past year. Oskar Blues has been brewing locally made Dales Pale Ale (and others), Sierra Nevada has been busy installing their brewing tanks, and New Belgium is preparing to start construction on their brewery in the River Arts District. In addition, there are at least four new breweries that will make their home in Asheville in the coming year. To celebrate all this beer goodness, The Second Annual Asheville Beer Week will be taking place from May 25th to June 1st. There will be plenty of events during the course of the week, and it will all culminate in the Fourth Annual Beer City Festival on June 1st (tickets go on sale locally starting Monday). Leading up to that week, a team of bloggers, including yours truly, will be writing about the beer scene here in the mountains of Western North Carolina. I invite you to follow our blog, and join us in celebrating the great beer culture we have established. Maybe I'll actually start posting with more regularity after its all said and done.

A Brewery of a Different Sort

2012-08-02T19:57:00.001-04:00

With so many breweries in Asheville, and more coming, it would seem that this town is infatuated with the magic of feremented beverages. Well, some local Ashevillians want to extend our love of locally produced fermented beverages to new and exciting places. Blue Kudzu Sake Company is a group of three people with a love of sake and a dream. They currently are raising money to be the one of only a handful of sake brewers in the United States.

Beer, as we all know, is composed of water, grain, hops, and yeast. It's the grains that give up their sugar to be converted to alcohol, and along with the hops and yeast they yield a variety of tastes and styles. The most common grain is barley, and the starch in any of these grains needs to be converted into a fermentable sugar before the yeast can do its work (hence, malted barley). While sake is not unlike beer, it uses a different grain (rice) to achieve fermentation. The fermentation of sake is a bit more complicated, and involves a process of adding both steamed rice, and rice that has been fermented with Aspergillus oryzae, otherwise known as kijo, which is a type of mold that is used in Asian cultures to make sake and other things that you like such as soy sauce and miso. The end result is a fermented rice beverage that tastes unlike any other.

Personally, my main experiences with sake have involved drinking it warm alongside an order of maguro, nigiri, and some sujiko (salmon roe, and yes, I had to look that up). Well warm sake is usually low quality, with higher quality sake being served cold. I remember having my first bottle of cold sake recently, and it was a revelation enjoying some of the more subtle flavors that are present. I am certainly looking forward to getting more educated and would love to see sake branch out from being a drink you only have when you order sushi.

I would love to be able to have some fresh, local sake, to go along with all the good local beer that we have available. Click here to donate.

Winner, Winner, Beer Dinner Part 2

2012-06-04T19:24:00.003-04:00

Wednesday night of Asheville Beer Week brought another night of great food and great beer. The event was held at the beautiful Century Room at Pack's Tavern, and was sponsored by Bruisin' Ales and the Asheville Independent Restaurants (AIR). The setup was a unique change of pace from your typical beer dinner, as each chef had a station that allowed you to pick and choose the order of the dishes and beers they were paired with. The evening started with an introduction from Bruisin' Ales Julie Atallah, who announced the special guests for the evening, which included Brian Grossman from Sierra Nevada who will be heading up the new Sierra Nevada brewery by the airport, as well as Terence Sullivan, former brewer and current Field Educator at Sierra, and Grady Hull, Assistant Brewmaster at New Belgium. It was nice to have some beer royalty at the event, which also included an unannounced visit from Vinnie and Natalie Cilurzo, owners of Russian River Brewing Company out of California.

With the formalities out of the way, lets move on to the beer and food, shall we? I guess we will start off with the first course that I decided to try, which was Chef Chazzy Edwards' stuffed crab with an aioli from Bluewater Seafood that I believe was made with the beer that this dish was paired with, the Saison Dupont. This was a great start to the meal, and I can't tell you enough how much I love Saison Dupont, but I will try to do it anyway. The Dupont is considered the quintessential example of the Saison style, which happens to be my favorite style of beer. Saisons, or farmhouse ales, were traditionally made with a lower alcohol content to be drunk by farmhands during the harvest season (need to talk to my boss about this idea). Today Saisons are much stronger, but they retain their origin using lighter malts and having a refreshing taste and a little bit of funk. This was a fine pairing, not that I am an expert at pairing food and beer (I think beer tastes good with just about every meal).

Next up, I tried the Chinese steamed buns with shortibs and kimchi and pickles, which was paired with Bacchus Sour Ale. The dish was made by Chef James Balchak of Pack's Tavern. James is a great friend, and also a great chef. The sweetness of the steamed buns and the Bacchus reduction paired well with the Sour Ale, and contrasted nicely with the mildly spicy kimchi. This was the first time I had tried the Bacchus Sour, and it won't be my last. The style of the beer is called Flanders Oud Bruin, or "old brown", and the beers are typically aged for up to a year, yielding fruity flavors that have a refreshing sour finish.

I am in the camp that says there is no such thing as too much shortribs, so I went straight for the shortrib pastie made with Dubbel pimento cheese, Lusty Monk Mustard, and a pickled slaw made by Chef Jason Brian of Jack of the Wood. A pastie is not what some of you may be thinking, but is actually a traditional Irish stuffed pie, and the shortrib was braised for 24 hours. It was paired with one of our new 'local' beers, a Sierra Nevada Ovila Dubbel. The style is named for 'double', which denoted a stronger version of the lighter beers that were typical of Trappist breweries, and it originated at Westmalle Abbey in 1856. Not unlike several other dishes, the shortrib was braised in the Dubbel, as well as the pimento cheese being made with the beer. The Ovila Dubbel is a great American brewed version of this classic Belgian beer.

A plate that caught my eye early was a braised elk dish that was made by Chef Mauricio Abreu of Chef Mo’s. The elk was braised in New Belgium Trippel and served along with rice and cornbread. The New Belgium Trippel was used in just about every part of the dish. The elk was wonderfully tender, and had a hint of earthiness from the ground achiote that coated the outside of the elk before braising. The New Belgium Trippel is a American brewed version of a Belgian style beer that got its origins roughly eighty years ago, in what was rumored to be an ale that was meant to compete with the ever more popular pilsner style beers of the day. Trippels are light in color, fruity, and often a little bit spicy, which was the case with New Belgium’s Trippel whose addition of coriander complimented the elk nicely.

One of the more playful dishes of the evening was the Lamb Fennel ‘Hot Dog’ that was made by Chef Greg Kilpatrick from Homegrown. It more closely resembled a small pulled pork sandwich, with a spiced minced lamb that was topped with fennel which gave the dish a nice twist, along with a great homemade ketchup and a side of sweet potato chips. The dish went well with the Omer Traditional Blonde, a Belgian Strong Pale Ale that had a fruity, slightly spicy finish that held up to the lamb without overpowering the dish. This was my first time having the Omer, and if you like Duvel, I would suggest giving the Omer a try.

Perhaps my favorite dish of the night was the braised pig “wings” (knuckles to be exact) by Chef Michel Baudouin from Bouchon. Once again, we see the chef incorporating the featured beer into the dish. This time the beer was The Ovila Quadrupel, and the pig knuckles were braised in the beer to tender perfection, leaving a wonderful broth behind that I wish I had more of. Quadrupels are so full of rich, dark fruit flavors that I think they really lend themselves to being used in cooking preparations (me, I would be too tempted to drink it all). The Ovila Quad was also one of my favorite beers of the evening, and it goes to prove that Sierra Nevada can successfully brew any style they want to.

My last course before heading to dessert was one I knew I would love before I took my first bite. Luella’s BBQ has outstanding ribs, and the ribs that were being served this night did not disappoint. Yes, there was some great potato salad as a side, but really, this was all about the Chef Jeff Miller's ribs, which were fall-off-the-bone tender and were served with a mustardy sauce made with New Belgium’s Belgo-IPA. The Belgo-IPA is New Belgium’s take on one of the newest styles to emerge from Belgium. Most Belgian style beers are not known for being aggressively hoppy, but Belgian brewers began to experiment with a new style that appealed to American tastes, and the Belgian IPA was born. It retains some characteristics of beers like the Tripel, but they incorporate more hops that play nice with the spicy character that Belgian yeasts often impart.

And finally it was time for dessert, which was made for us by Chef Anthony Cerrato of the new downtown restaurant Strada. Poor Chef Serrato had little to do while most of the people at the dinner made their way through the seven other food stations. But before long, people needed to get their sweet on, and he did not disappoint. A natural given his Italian cooking roots, Chef Seratto made a wonderful tiramisu, consisting of cream, and I am guessing marscapone, coffee, and ladyfingers (I can never tire of saying or writing the word ladyfingers). This was paired with a Kasteel Rouge, a Belgian fruit beer that is flavored with cherries. Unfortunately, this was not my favorite pairing. Don’t get me wrong, I loved the tiramisu and would gladly order it at Strada. I just did not think it went well with the sweet and sour cherry goodness that is Kasteel Rouge, which I also love. Others that I talked to liked the pairing fine, so what do I know. I think some sort of dark chocolate dessert would have matched better.

I hope you are still awake after this long post. Two nights in a row of great food, great beer , and great people. If you haven’t been to a beer dinner before, I suggest keeping your eyes and ears open for the next event. Beer and food go great together, but more important to me was having a shared experience with old and new friends alike.

Thanks Sue.

Winner, Winner, Beer Dinner Part 1

2012-06-03T14:40:00.001-04:00

This week I have felt like royalty. I was lucky enough to attend two beer dinners on consecutive nights that were part of Asheville Beer Week, and they both were outstanding events.

First up was the Thirsty Monk and Curáte dinner on Tuesday night. The evening started at the Thirsty Monk with the Spanish beer Estrella Damm Inedit, a witbier that was developed in cooperation with Ferran Adria, former head of the world famous Spanish restaurant El Bulli. It was quite an appropriate first beer, since Curáte's chef Katie Button interned at El Bulli before opening her Tapas restaurant here in Asheville. The Estrella was paired with a red snapper and shrimp ceviche and a chicken mousselline with orange and fennel on a crustini, with both dishes prepared by the Chef Todd Mallin at the Thirsty Monk.

After a couple of beers, the group walked down to Curáte for the main attraction. There is a nice private room downstairs, and every beer was paired with three courses that were shared family style, with the last beer that was plated with dessert. First up was the Westmalle Tripel. Westmalle was one of my first introductions to Belgian beer, and it has been awhile since I have had their Tripel, and it is such a great beer. The first three courses were toasted bread with tomato and olive oil, cod and potato puree, and the oh so delicious spanish ham. If you have not had the ham at Curáte, I suggest going there to try it. Right now. You can finish reading this blog when you get back.

The second course featured Orval, one of my favorite beers by the trappist breweries. The interesting thing about Orval is the addition of brettanomyces, which gives the beer a slightly funky (in a good way) aftertaste. The taste of the beer changes over time, ensuring that every time you have an Orval it is a unique experience. The food in this course was amazing. First off was a green salad with sunchoke, carrot, peas, and a sherry brown butter vinaigrette that made the whole dish sing. This was followed by a shrimp and garlic dish that had a wonderful broth for dipping your bread into. Lastly, we were served asparagus with romesco sauce, which is similar to a pesto but with red pepper instead of basil.

Course number three included the Chimay Grande Reserve (or Chimay Blue), which is a Belgian Quadrupel. Quads are wonderful beers that are high in alcohol and great in flavor. The high alcohol comes from the addition of dark candi sugar, and that combined with using belgian yeast strains yields a beer that is rich with notes of fig, date, and raisins. While enjoying this beer, we were served lamb skewers with Moroccan-like spices, mushrooms sauteed with sherry, and the last course was fried eggplant drizzled with wild mountain honey. All the courses were delicious.

The final course was a dessert that was made especially for the dinner that was introduced to us by Chef Katie Button. The beer for this course was the Rochefort 10, another quad style belgian beer and is considered to be one of the best beers in the world. The beer was paired with a take on a turrón, which is a spanish style confection that resembled a creamy nougat and also had carmelized almonds. The taste reminded me of one of my favorite childhood cereals, Sugar Smacks (Dig-em!). In addition to the nougat was an apricot sorbet, and it all went together surprisingly well considering all the contrasting flavors.

Overall it was a fantastic meal. I love the pacing of a long beer dinner, and while I was tired at work the next day it was well worth the experience. The good news is that many of the dishes that were served with this dinner are available on Curáte's Spring Tasting Menu (small menu, large menu), which will not be available long.

Thanks mom, and Caroline, Barry and Donita.

My Guide to Asheville Beer Week

2012-05-25T22:00:00.001-04:00

Asheville Beer Week kicked off in great fashion last night at Highland Brewery, which held a fundraiser for the family of Ben Harris, who tragically died in a freak accident at Red Hook Brewery in New Hampshire. There were kegs from just about every brewery in Western North Carolina on tap, as well as an auction, and all the proceeds went to help Ben Harris's surviving family. It's a sobering thought that one could lose their life doing what they love, and it shows just how precious life is. It also shows the spirit of Asheville Beer Week, which is raising money for various causes over the course of the next week. If you didn't make it to Highland and want to contribute, they are accepting donations at the following address:

The Alysha Miller Harris Baby Fund c/o TD Bank,
20 International Drive, Portsmouth, NH, 03801

Since I am on a blogging roll this week, I thought I would highlight a few of the events this week that I am either attending, or hope to. There are many more events that I unfortunately cannot make. Have they perfected human cloning yet?

Green Man Brewing Session Beer Fest - All Week

The great thing about this 'fest' is that it is going on all week, so you can drop in anytime to see what's on tap. I was able to try a Czech lager last night, and they have many different beer styles that will be available over the coming week. The great thing about session beers is that you can sit down and have a few and still make it home safely. This fest also shows that 'lighter' beers do not have to lack in flavor. Speaking of flavor, get to Green Man quickly to try their Funk #49, their American Red Sour Ale. It will not last long.

Bruisin' Ale's presents: Stone Brewing EPIC Vertical Tasting - May 29

First of all, you can't go wrong when Stone Brewing is involved. This tasting features an assortment of Stone Brewing's beers, both old and new including four years of the oh so delicious Double Bastard. Even better than having great beer from Stone, the proceeds go to local resident and musician Debrissa McKinney to help with her healthcare costs. Asheville Beer Week is bigger than just beer.

Thirsty Monk and Curate Beer Dinner - May 29

Trappist ales? Curate? Do I need to write anything else? If you haven't been to Curate, you must go, as they have brought world class Spanish Tapas to Asheville, with a celebrated chef who worked at the famous El Bulli restaurant in Spain. That, combined with having great Belgian beer should be enough to convince anyone to attend this great dinner.

Bruisin' Ales, Pack's Tavern and Air present: Beerchef! - May 30

What do you get when you combine some of the most talented local chefs with Belgian style beers and guest appearances from representatives of our newest 'local' breweries, Sierra Nevada and New Belgium? An awesome evening, if I do say so myself. I love that this event showcases some of the local culinary talents of our great city, and it will be great to see what ideas the chefs have to pair with the variety of Belgian style beers. There are eight, yes eight courses, so you ought to leave satiated with a grin on your face. I am so looking forward to this.

Bruisin' Ales and Zambra presents: Beer Cocktails and Tapas - May 31

Beer cocktails you say? Yes, part of me is a little scared. But the mixologists at Zambra's, the original tapas restaurant in Asheville know what they are doing. They are featuring spirits made by New Holland, Rogue, and Dogfish Head, in what is a growing craft distillery market. The other good thing about this event is that it is a la carte, so you can spend as little or as much as you want.

Thirsty Monk Presents: Brux with Brian Grossman of Sierra Nevada and Vinnie Cilurzo of Russian River - May 31

Russian River. The first time I had one of their sour beers was a revelation. Beer that to me is as complicated and exquisite as any wine, I have always cherished anytime I was lucky enough to come across a bottle of their beer. Sierra Nevada and Russian river collaborated on a wild ale called Brux, which will be sampled at this event. Not to mention that Vinnie Cilurzo, the founder of Russian River will be there. I am hoping, praying, begging that one day they will distribute their beer here in North Carolina. I will also be broke if that happens. Broke and happy.

Thirsty Monk Presents: Surly Brewing tasting and Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity fundraiser - June 1

Surly Brewing Company is known for their aggressive great tasting beers and they were one of the first craft breweries to embrace the wonderful beer delivery device known as the can. This is a great opportunity to try a brewery that does not distribute to North Carolina, and support a great cause at the same time.

In what is my longest post ever, I still have not highlighted all the other great events happening during Asheville Beer Week. For more information on the all the events, please click here. Asheville, what are you waiting for? Get out there and celebrate Beer City.

Festivals for the Rest of Us

2012-05-24T12:52:00.002-04:00

Another year has gone by, and once again, Brewgrass tickets have sold out quicker than Keanu Reeves driving a city bus. Yet during Asheville Beer Week, there are two beer festivals occurring, and tickets are still available to both.

First, coming up this Saturday is the Just Brew It Homebrew Festival being held at the Wedge Brewery as part of Asheville Beer Week. I went to this festival last year, and it was the best bang for the buck fest I have ever been too. Sixteen dollars gets you three hours of drinking many different varieties of beer. And this isn’t just any beer that you can pick up at the store or your local brewery. These beers have all been handcrafted by local homebrewers, so you are likely to see a variety of original, and often whimsical styles that you would not see a bigger brewer take a chance on. Tickets are on sale through Friday.

And the big event on the last weekend of Asheville Beer Week is the Beer City Festival. I recall many people last year, and some this year as well complaining about not getting Brewgrass tickets, but we have this great festival celebrating local and regional craft brewing and somehow there are still tickets left. I would argue that Beer City Fest is in a better location in the heart of downtown, and has a greater variety of music (come on people, Yo Mamma’s Big Fat Booty Band is playing). Tickets are available at Barley's, Bruisin' Ales, and some local breweries through the end of the day Thursday, and there may be some tickets at the fest on June 2^nd.

Wondering how to get to these festivals? Asheville has revamped their bus system, with an increased frequency in heavily used corridors, night service in more areas, and the buses are free until June 8th. I plan on taking advantage of this myself, and I hope many of you will do the same.

We've come a long way, baby

2012-05-22T20:09:00.001-04:00

So in just a couple of days, Asheville will be celebrating its ascendance to being one of the top places in the country for beer lovers with a week and a half long coronation of sorts, including beer dinners, special keg releases and beer tastings, and some excellent beer dinners. It is a well deserved commemoration of how far Asheville has come.

When I moved to Asheville in 1997, Highland Brewing Company, Asheville's true beer pioneers, was just about the only local beer in town. Jack of the Wood (Green Man) had opened just a couple of months prior, and their Wee-Heavy had me hooked on getting fresh, local, good beer, and I never could have imagined how far it would go. As more breweries began to open up, North Carolina finally popped the cap on its archaic beer laws, and the scene was set for what we have today. This past year has seen Asheville and Western North Carolina land three major craft breweries that saw what was going on in our little ol' town and liked it. It is a testament to the brewers, beer store owners, and beer drinkers of Western North Carolina that allowed this to happen. One of the many endearing qualities that Asheville has is an emphasis on locally made and grown products, and supporting your neighbors business. This quality is the main reason we are able to have such a great event like Asheville Beer Week.

So please, if you can, get out there and support Asheville Beer by attending one of the many events that will be taking place over the next couple of weeks. Here's hoping that Asheville Beer Week is a smashing success, and an event that will last at least until the sun decides to grow into a red giant, at which point we will have to move the event elsewhere.

As an aside, yes, this is my annual post to the beer blog. When I took over this blog, one of main reasons I did so was to promote the local beer scene. Well, it no longer needs promoting from me, and it speaks for itself. Twitter has become the go to source for beer news in the area, so it is really hard to write about anything that hasn't already been said (same goes for this post). It has been great seeing all the growth in this industry, and I look forward to what lies ahead. As for me, I may occasionally post here, and I have contemplated starting another blog that is not limited to one subject (of course I have been having that thought for at least a year).

Speaking of Local...

2011-04-30T11:38:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow (Sunday the 1st) is the inaugural Big Love Fest in downtown Asheville. Organized by the Asheville Grown Business Alliance and Big Crafty, the festival promises a celebration of all things local, with artists, food, and beer. Speaking of beer, as part of the festival, Just Economics will be hosting their second annual Homebrew Festival and Tasting from 2-5 pm. If you want to go, you must make a donation to Just Economics, and it has to happen today, because they are not allowed to sell tickets on the day of the event (should have posted this earlier this week). This is a great opportunity to see and sample all the creative homebrewers that live in our great community. The weather tomorrow is going to be perfect, so I hope to see everyone out there.

How Local is Your Beer?

2011-04-13T22:12:00.011-04:00

We Ashevillians love to buy local. From our numerous small businesses to our weekly markets scattered across town, there is no shortage of love for everything Asheville. This love also extends to our beer. In Beer City, you would be hard pressed not to find several local beers on tap in just about every bar and dining establishment in town. Unfortunately, our beers are not exactly local, and presently it is impossible to brew a truly local beer on a brewery sized scale. I'm hoping that will change.

Lets take a look at the present state of brewing in the United States. Unless you live in a few choice regions in the country, all of the ingredients used to brew your beer will be coming from other places. You might get your malted barley from Europe and your hops from the Pacific Northwest. And there isn't anything wrong with that. Like a great chef, a brewer may need a specific ingredient that is not available locally to get the exact flavor profile that he or she is looking for. But I also think that there is a market for a beer that is made with 100 percent local ingredients. And herein lies the problem. North Carolina is not exactly known for its barley, wheat or hop production. Thankfully, the times they are a changing.

Look no further than the North Carolina Organic Bread Flour Project (please visit their website to donate to the cause). For years, local bread makers have been using milled flour from far away places. Recently, there has been a movement to use heirloom wheat that is grown and milled locally, producing a bread that is local from the seed to the table. If it can happen with bread, it can happen with beer. Unfortunately there is a significant hurdle standing in the way.

Beer requires more than just barley or wheat to brew. The grains have to be malted. Malting involves soaking the grains to start the germination process. After a couple of days or so, the grains are heated at just the right moment to stop the germination process to leave the grain with the right amount of fermentable sugar needed to make beer. Many years ago, most local communities in early America, as well as across the pond had their own malt house to produce malted barley. Those days are gone, and almost all the malted barley and wheat used to brew beer is made by giant malt houses, miles and miles away. Some people are trying to change this. Valley Malt, in Hadley Massachusetts, is blazing a new trail on the path to locally made beers. Working with local farmers and brewers, they are making a go at a business that has been dormant for years. The fruits of their labor were realized when Mass Whole Ale was brewed by Wormtown Brewery, the first 'local' beer brewed in Massachusetts in well over half a century.

The other half of the equation is hops. With the assistance from the Cooperative Extension of North Carolina, many hop farms are springing up across Western North Carolina. Both French Broad and Pisgah have brewed beer using fresh hops from local producers, and while small, the farms are growing in number, size and yield. One of the biggest innovations in locally produced hops is happening at Echoview Farms in Weaverville. Fresh hops need to be used within a couple of weeks of harvest. But dried hops are what enable brewers to make beer year round, and Echoview has invested in an oast, which is basically a hop kiln that dries the hops slowly to retain the flavors necessary for great beer. In addition to drying hops, Echoview hopes to invest in equipment that will turn the hops into pellets, which is the preferred hop medium for most breweries.

So how long will it be until we have a truly local beer? Well, that depends on you Western North Carolina. We already have pioneers that are willing to invest in making local ingredients necessary for beer. With hops, we are well on our way, and thanks to the fine local bakers in our region, farmers have been convinced that they can use some of their precious acreage for grain production. That only leaves one thing. Is there a maltster in the house?

Catching up is Hard to Do

2010-01-07T19:19:00.003-05:00

So much has happened in the past couple of months in Beer City USA that it would be futile to try and sum it up. Thankfully, my friends at Bruisin' Ales, as well as edgymama at the Mountain Express have been around to keep everyone abreast of all the important beer news. I would definitely seek them out for all your Asheville beer needs.

The most talked about local beer news is undoubtedly the Lexington Avenue Brewery. It has been a long time coming, but they are finally just about ready for business. I was able to get a sneak peek at the brewery last night. What a fantastic place it is. The bar snakes around the center of the building and around the glass enclosed brew tanks. It really is a great looking place. Oh, and they brew beer. Six to be exact. They have a belgian white, a pilsner, a marzen, an American Pale Ale, an IPA, and a chocolate stout. I got to sample each beer, and they did a really great job with each style. Couple the beer with a very interesting menu and a great space, and I have no doubt that LAB will be around for a long time. So when are they going to be open? Soon. Very soon. I'm sure if you swing by over the weekend you can see how things are going there.

In a little over two weeks on January 23rd, the Winter Warmer beer festival returns this year for its third incarnation. It will feature local and regional beers, as well as food from the Lobster Trap, where local celebrity chef Tres Hundertmark will attempt to set the world record for shucking oysters (drool). I have attended the last two Winter Warmer fests, and it is always a good time. The organizers are the same folks who do the Asheville Brews Cruise, and the proceeds from this years event will go to Riverlink.

Feel like a road trip? Head down towards the beach for the Charleston Brewvival on February 27th. The festival will feature special and rare beers from breweries across the country, as well as having Greg Koch, owner of Stone Brewery, as the keynote speaker. It might be a good time to escape from the cold and check out a great city that is looking to make a name for itself in the beer world (check out Coast Brewing if you are ever down there).

Locally, there are some great beers that are out right now. Highland is celebrating their 15th anniversary with their Auld Asheville Vintage Ale. Pisgah has just released its annual Baptista Ale. Green Man is pouring a really good imperial stout. How lucky we are.

And lastly, there will be a new Asheville centric beer site launching in February. Asheville Microbreweries will feature information on local breweries, a beer forum, articles, maps and more. Hey, maybe I can take a few more months off. It will be great to have a one stop site for both out of towners and locals alike to learn and celebrate our great beer city.

Okay, that is it for now. I wish everyone a happy new year, and I hope to be around a bit more this year.

The Return of the Long Lost Blogger

2010-01-07T18:46:00.002-05:00

Yes, it has been a long time since I have updated the ol' Asheville Beer Blog. Lets just say that 2009 was not the best of years for me. I don't like to get personal in a blog about local beer, but here goes. The fun began in March when my dad became ill and was admitted to the hospital. I spent a week in Florida, helping out my mother and spending every day in the hospital with dad. We were waiting for a diagnosis, and when I finally left to come back home we had one. My dad had vasculitis, a somewhat rare and hard to diagnose disease. But the news was initially good, as the doctors felt it could be treated. I was home for a little over a week when I got a call from my mother. I instantly knew what the call was for. My dad died on March 31st of last year. He was a 30 year Marine veteran, and was a little rough around the edges, but he had a great heart. I miss him every day.

Naturally, the year did not start off well. Fast forward to September. My brother-in-law was admitted to the hospital, and eventually was taken to ICU and went into a coma. Things did not get better from there. He died on October 3, 2009, my wife and her other brother by his side. Allan was one of the most fun people that I have ever met. He is also missed.

Oh, and to top it off, we had to put our long time beagle companion to sleep the weekend before Thanksgiving. Seriously, my life has been a country song this year.

Needless to say, I really haven't been motivated to keep up this blog. My wife and I are still dealing with the losses of our loved ones. One of the lessons you learn as you get older is how to deal with loss, and we have had a crash course this past year.

So, what now? I have never been the best person at keeping up with this blog, even without life's distractions. But I will do my best to get back into the swing of things. Starting now.

The Final Countdown

2009-09-16T21:18:00.008-04:00

So its almost here. Perhaps the biggest celebration of the year for our local beer scene. Brewgrass started way back in 1996, when we had one brewery and one good beer bar. Things have changed a lot since then, but Brewgrass is still the annual event that everyone looks forward to. This is personally my 10th Brewgrass, and it is always a day filled with great beer, great friends, and I hear that they have great music too. This year should be no different. For a great rundown of this year's Brewgrass, as well as what to expect from WNC breweries, check out this Mountain Xpress article. As for other breweries, I will be on the lookout for Coast Brewing from Charleston, and Ham's Brewing out of Greenville, NC (some underated beer from this brewery). And I say this every year, if you are looking for tickets, check out craigslist, and if you don't have any luck there, show up early at MLK park and put on your best sad face. I always see people selling tickets outside. There will also be a raffle at tomorrow's Bruisin' Ales beer tasting for tickets. I hope to have a full writeup of Brewgrass next week.

If you are looking for some pre-Brewgrass activities, look no further than the Thirsty Monk. This Thursday night, that is tomorrow for those counting at home, there will be a cask from New Belgium brewery, a rare treat. In addition to the cask, they will also be tapping the Founders Canadian Breakfast Stout. This is not in reference to Canadian Bacon, which is neither bacon, nor Canadian (discuss). The Canadian part comes from aging the beer in bourbon barrels that were used to make maple syrup. This is an extremely rare beer that I highly encourage you folks to try. I will definitely be there. Friday at the Monk will feature a cask all the way from Rogue Brewing Company.

The other beer news for the week can be found at this Mountain Express article (thanks for doing my job Edgy Mama). Of note is the new south location of the Thirsty Monk, which I will give a full report on soon, and also the news of a new beer festival that will be held in late spring in Asheville. Tickets will go on sale at the Brewgrass festival, and at local breweries starting this Friday.

And now for a rant. I am extremely excited that we will be host to another beer festival. In my opinion, there is no such thing as too many beer festivals. But please, can you wait until we get a little closer to these beer festivals before you put your tickets on sale? Brewgrass tickets went on sale back in FEBRUARY. There are many folks who had no idea that they went on sale until it was too late. And now this spring festival's tickets are going on sale a full 8 months before the date of the festival. I have no idea what my calendar will look like in May. Obviously, my advice to you is to buy the tickets, since it will probably sell out sometime before the last leaves fall off the trees. I will give credit to the folks at the World Beer Festival who do it right. Tickets for the Durham event went on sale one month prior to the event, and they never have a problem selling out. While I'm at it, can you also limit the amount of tickets sold to one person? Four would be a good number. The more people get a chance at tickets, the better. Okay rant over, and again, I appreciate the festivals and I know they take a lot of work to produce.

Happy drinking, and we'll see you at Brewgrass.

Smoke on the Water

2009-09-05T19:58:00.004-04:00

For two years running, Highland Brewing Company has sponsered a homebrewing competition where the winner gets to have his own brew made and sold by Highland. Last years winner was Aaron Schenk, a local homebrewer whose winning recipe was a Cream Ale. This years winner is also a local, and is familiar to many in the homebrewing scene here in Asheville. Alex Buerckholtz, owner of Hops and Vines a beer/wine/homebrew shop in West Asheville won this year's competition with his Big Butte Smoked Porter. Alex has been brewing beer for years, and this is not the first time he has had accolades for his beer. In 2006, he was a finalist for the Samuel Adams Long Shot homebrewing competition, and while he didn't win, he did get to attend the Great American Beer Festival courtesy of Sam Adams. This year, he gets to see his beer entered into the Great American Beer Festival in the Pro/Am category for his smoked porter. We wish him luck.

You can get a chance to try the beer and meet Alex this Tuesday (September 8th), when Hops and Vines will debut the beer with a special tasting that runs from 5 to 7 pm. They are also raffling off a pair of Brewgrass tickets for those folks who weren't able to get them when they went on sale back in spring.

Renovations

2009-09-02T18:15:00.004-04:00

For those of you who visit the site, you may have noticed a freshening up around here. I decided to do a slight redesign that was spurred on by the failure of my old Google Calendar gadget. Other than the cosmetic changes, I added links to Asheville beer bars, updated the brewery list, and put in a new look for google calendar. It would be perfect if only google could figure out a way to word wrap my calendar entries. Speaking of the calendar, I do my best to keep up with it, and I have also learned how to embed html links into my calendar entries so you can easily be sent to the event's website. So for all of those readers who only look at my blog through your favorite RSS feed reader, please stop by and check it out. And if anyone has any suggestions about the site, feel free to let me know.

History Lesson

2009-08-31T19:24:00.003-04:00

I'm a wee bit late in posting this, but the Thirsty Monk is hosting a Dogfish Head Ancient Ales Week that started tonight. This week will feature four of Dogfish Head's historical ales, three of which have never been on tap in Asheville before. The festivies have already begun tonight, as the Monk has tapped the Midas Touch, which is based on ingredients found in 2700 year old drinking vessels in Turkey. If you haven't had the Midas Touch before, it has some great mead like qualities that come from the addition of honey. This will be followed tomorrow night by the Chateau Jihau, which is based on a 9000 year old recipe found in China. Yes folks, fermented beverages have been around for a long time. Wednesday will feature the chocolate and chile flavored Theobroma poured from a bottle. And Thursday they will tap the Sah'tea, a juniper and chai tea flavored beer based on an old Finnish beer style called Sahti, which used juniper and other herbs to flavor the beer before hops came into style. Thursday night will also feature the debut of the Punkin Ale, Dogfish's spin on the ever popular pumpkin beers that show up in the fall. Oh, and there is a chance that a very special limited Dogfish beer could appear on cask that night as well (I've been sworn to secrecy on this one, but I hope they can get it).

Allagash Bash

2009-08-22T17:01:00.007-04:00

Asheville has been host to several of the beer worlds biggest names over the past couple of years, including Alain De Laet of Delerium Tremens, Adam Avery of Avery Brewing, Lee Chase, former Stone Brewer, and of course, Sam Calagione of Dogfish Head. Heck, I even ran into Jeff Lebesch and Kim Jordan, owners of New Belgium Brewery, on my birthday last year. Next week, another big name will be visiting our fair city. Rob Tod, Brewmaster for Allagash Brewing Company, will be in town to promote his brewery, which is well known as being one of the best belgian style breweries in America.

The festivities begin at 5 pm on Tuesday the 25th at Bruisin' Ales, where Rob Todd will be on hand for a beer tasting. This is a special tasting that requires a reservation, and it costs 15 dollars, with proceeds going to the Friends of the Blue Ridge Parkway. This is an excellent opportunity to meet one of the country's premier brewers, and to sample some of Allagash's fine beers. In addition, Julie and Jason will be preparing some great food to be paired with the beers. Just call Bruisin' Ales at 252-8999 to make your reservation.

The fun doesn't stop there, as Rob Tod will be heading over to the Thirsty Monk after the tasting at around 7 pm. The Monk will have five Allagash beers on tap all week, including the Black, the White, the Hugh Malone, the Fluxus 2008, and one of my personal favorites, the Interlude. They will also have a special keg that evening, the Burnham Road, a smoked beer. The Allagash festivities continue all week at the Monk, with Pint Night on Wednesday and the Odyssey, my other favorite Allagash beer, will be on cask Thursday. Be sure to check it out.

Beer Fests Galore

2009-08-20T22:28:00.003-04:00

The approach of fall means many things. Cooler weather, so I can put on my vintage 1993 flannel shirts. Raking leaves. And beer festivals. There are a bevy of events coming up, so lets run down some highlights.

On Saturday September 5th, the second annual High Country Beer Fes t will be taking place in Boone, NC. I haven't been to the event, but you can't go wrong with good beer and the great scenery of our northern North Carolina Mountains. Tickets are 20 dollars in advance, and the beer pours from 4-8 pm. Proceeds from the festival will go to the Hospitality House in Boone, and, get this, the Ivory Tower Brewery at ASU, which will be the first educational non-profit brewpub in the country. The brewery will include courses on brewing and beer, in addition to running the facility with green energy. It may be time for me to go back to school.

Of course, Brewgrass will be two weeks later on the 19th. Tickets have been sold out since sometime in 2003, but if you want to go, check craigslist, and by all means, show up. I have seen people selling their tickets for reasonable prices every year.

If you don't mind a drive, the World Beer Festival in Durham is on October 3rd. I have been to this event for the past two years, and while it gets a little crowded and the time flies by, it is still a great event, featuring quite a few beers that are not available locally. Tickets will go on sale in early September.

Thanks to a comment in my previous post, I was informed of another event happening the same day as the World Beer Fest. Hotoberfest runs from 12 to 7, featuring beer, music, family activities, and prizes. At some point I will post about my Atlanta trip, but in summary, Atlanta is a great beer town, and you could visit some of the area's breweries and brewpubs to make it a weekend. Tickets are on sale and are 30/50 dollars.

The next weekend, Asheville will be hosting its inaugural Oktoberfest on October 10th, sponsored by the Asheville Downtown Association. About time I say, but better late than never. The festival will truly be a local event, featuring many of our local breweries along with german food from three local restaurants. Many of the local brewers will be featuring seasonal beers for the event, and I hope to see them be in the true Oktoberfest style. This should be a fun time. Tickets go on sale August 31st for 25 dollars.

Go ahead and fill up your datebooks, and we'll see you at some of these events.

Odds and Suds

2009-08-11T18:50:00.003-04:00

Wow, its already the middle of August. Time has been flying by this summer. Just wanted to post a quick writeup of the area beer happenings.

First up, a new watering hole is on the horizon. Work will soon begin on what will be called Pack's Tavern in the old Hayes and Hopson building located on Spruce Street adjacent to Pack Square. They plan on featuring over 80 taps, which should make it the largest selection in the city. Folks here in Asheville have been following the controversy surronding the development around Pack Square for the past couple of years, and at one point the Hayes and Hopson building was scheduled to be demolished. Thankfully, they have found a reason to keep the historic building, and politics aside, I hope to see the building remain and be put to good use. Tentative plans are for the pub to be open in early 2010.

Speaking of other pubs, lots of work is being done to the Universal Joint, located across from the Bledsoe Building in West Asheville. I'm not sure if it will be a beer destination, but any new place on the west side is good news to me. No word yet on when the opening date will be.

I also happened to walk by the Lexington Avenue Brewery the other day to see how far they are coming along. Needless to say, previous estimates of their grand opening have been premature, but that is par for the course with all the work that is involved in building a new place. I will say the interior is starting to come together, and the beautiful curved bar practically begs you to take a seat. My guess is that they will not be open until sometime in the fall. I'll be sure to pass along any info I get.

Tired of hearing about new bars? Sorry, I have one more to tell you about. The Thirsty Monk is opening a location in Arden for all those folks who hate to drive downtown. The new bar will be located in Gerber village, and will have a nice outdoor patio for the warmer months. The bar will be a mixture of local, national and Belgian ales. Plans are for the Thirsty Monk South to be open by the end of the month.

If you missed out on Brewgrass, tickets are still available for the Asheville Tourist's Baseball and Beer festival coming up on August 22nd. Over thirty breweries will be represented, along with music and food.

Thats it for now. There are lots of exciting things happening over the couple of months, and I hope to keep you informed.

Beer Bash Tonight

2009-06-26T12:39:00.003-04:00

I've been out of town on some much needed R & R, but I am back just in time for the Beer City Bash tonight at the Orange Peel. Tickets are still available and cost only 10 dollars. Seriously, you have no excuse not to go. Bruisin' Ales has even been giving away tickets on their twitter account. If you want to read more about it, check out the article on Asheville beer in the Mountain X. Hopefully I will see you all there. I also hope to have a nice post about my latest beer travels soon.

Ticket to Ride

2009-06-05T19:27:00.003-04:00

This must be the week to get the hot ticket. First, there was the frenzy for the Beastie Boys show at the Orange Peel, and apparently I am the only one in Asheville who actually scored two tickets. But there are other hot tickets to be had this week.

The first big event coming soon is ~~my birthday~~ the Beer City Bash, a celebration of Asheville's newly designated title of Beer City U.S.A. (East). Okay, so it is happening the day before my birthday, but still, it should be a rollicking good time in celebration of me Asheville beer. The big day is June 26th with doors opening at 7:30. Ten dollars gets you two 9 ounce beers, a raffle ticket, and the pleasure of hearing three great local bands, Wilsin, Floating Action, and the fine folks who made the Beer Y'all movie, Rat Jackson. Tickets are on sale RIGHT NOW. I suggest you get them as early as possible. Be there or be square.

And if you haven't had enough of dealing with ticketing agencies this week, on Saturday morning (tomorrow), tickets for the Baseball and Beers festival will go on sale. The festival, scheduled for Saturday August 22nd, will feature over 30 brewers from throughout the southeast, and unlike Brewgrass, you get to use an actual bathroom. Again, the earlier the better if you think you want to go.

This next item has nothing to do with tickets, but there was a good writeup of the Lexington Avenue Brewery on the Asheville Now website. It looks like the LAB will be focusing on German Style beers, with a Kolsch, Pilsner, Hefeweizen, and Marzen to be among the regular taps. It sounds like it is going to be a great space and I look forward to seeing them open later this year.

I come from Alabama with a Belgian Ale on me knee

2009-05-22T18:38:00.002-04:00

So the governor of Alabama listened to the people and signed HB373, which will greatly expand the selection of beers in Alabama, and will hopefully encourage some local breweries there to experiment with some different beer styles. I know the folks down there must be pretty happy, and I am drinking a beer right now in their honor.

In other news, I went to the premiere of Beer Y'all last night, and it was a great evening. The guys who made this did a really good job of showcasing the great beer culture of North Carolina. In addition to all the great breweries featured, the film was part rockumentary, featuring the band Rat Jackson, a great bluesy rock band that I might have to check out the next time they play in Asheville. Also in attendence where many of Asheville's local beer celebrities that were featured in the film. If you missed the movie, you will get a second chance to see it this Saturday night (tomorrow) at Asheville Brewing on Coxe Avenue at 9 pm. Admission is free, and if you can't make it there you can also purchase the dvd online, or at Bruisin Ales when they get some copies of the dvd in the near future.

Free the Hops

2009-05-20T19:21:00.004-04:00

After some tireless work by a group of avid beer fans in Alabama called Free the Hops, on May 14th, the Alabama Senate passed bill HB373, which will raise the cap on the percentage of alcohol by volume from 6 percent to 13.9 percent. I ran into a few folks that came up from Alabama for the Dogfish Head Brunch on Sunday, and needless to say, they were very excited. The bill is currently sitting on the governor's desk. If the governor does not sign the bill by May 25th, it is considered a 'pocket veto' and the bill will die.

If you recall, North Carolina went through our own fight to pop the cap, and on August 13th, 2003, we went from 6 percent to 15 percent, significantly adding to the variety of beers we have available, as well as unleashing the creativity of our local brewers. Without this law, there would be no "Beer City USA" designation, no Thirsty Monk, no Pisgah Baptista, no visit from Sam Calagione of Dogfish Head (okay, I think you are catching my drift). Since that time, South Carolina has popped the cap as well, and early this year West Virginia did the same. That leaves Alabama and Mississippi as the only two states with severe limitations on alcohol content of beer.

So if you have relatives or friends in Alabama, please pass along the word for them to call or email the governor to show their support. Contact information can be found here.

Odds and Suds

2009-05-19T19:40:00.002-04:00

First of all, what a fantastic weekend of beer. The Dogfish Head Mountain Weekend was a smashing success. We had our good beer friends from Pennsylvania, Deuane and Carolyn in town, and we hit up all three Dogfish events. Sam Calagione from Dogfish arrived a little late to the first tasting because of an airline hiccup, but he was nice and generous, and went out of his way to speak to everyone who was there. The following night was the Pint Night at the Thirsty Monk, which had an excellent turnout along with some rare treats from Dogfish Head on tap. The weekend wrapped up with one of the best meals I have ever had. Adam Bannasch, head chef of Zambra, created a wonderful set of dishes that matched really well with the dogfish beers. From the light shrimp salad paired with Red and White, to the tenderloin with microgreens and rabbit gravy over a biscuit paired with the 90 minute IPA, the meal was exquisite. I'm ashamed to admit that this was my first official beer dinner, but it will not be my last. Overall it was a great weekend and Sam really seemed to enjoy Asheville, and he was a great storyteller as well during the brunch, giving us some inside details on each beer that was being served.

Of course the beer fun never stops in Asheville, and this Thursday at Asheville Pizza and Brewing on Merrimon is the world premiere of the documentary, Beer Y'all. Beer Y'all is a rock and roll and beer adventure that spans 27 breweries across North Carolina, and I am sure that a few of those breweries will be familiar to us. Advance tickets for the 9 pm showing are being sold at Bruisin' Ales, the Weinhaus, Hops and Vines, and Asheville Pizza and Brewing. It should be a nice celebration of the growing craft brew scene in North Carolina.

As for other events, it looks like Asheville is getting another beer festival. Baseball and Beers will be held by the Asheville Tourists on August 22nd, featuring 30 beer vendors as well as food and music. There won't be a baseball game, but you will get free admission to a Tourists game with the purchase of a ticket to the festival. Tickets go on sale on June 6th, and start at 20 dollars. I hope this is the start of a yearly tradition. The Tourists have done a great job this year of featuring local craft brews on tap, as well as conducting 'beer races' for games that happen Thursday-Saturday. I may have to get in shape to participate.

And lastly, a I just wanted to point out a couple of mentions of Asheville beer. Pisgah Brewing's Solstice won a blind tasting of Belgian style Tripels back in February in Brooklyn. The tasting was sponsered by Ale Street News, and Pisgah faced some stiff competition and came out on top. Also, Asheville Pizza and Brewing got a nod from the travel website Matador Trips as one fo the top 20 Microbreweries in America. Congratulations to both breweries on getting some love.

American Craft Beer Week

2009-05-12T22:48:00.002-04:00

This week, from May 11-17 is American Craft Brew Week. It is organized by the Brewer's Association for people to declare their 'independence' by supporting breweries that produce less than 2 million barrels of beer a year (that pretty much covers everything but the big three, which aren't even American owned anyway). You may be asking yourself, "Self, what can I do to celebrate this most wonderful week?". Well I have gathered a few ideas for you.

Wednesday night at the Thirsty Monk, there will be a Duck Rabbit pint night. Buy a Duck Rabbit beer and keep the pint. That's a pretty nifty deal if you ask me. It has gotten to the point where the only glassware I use at home are pint glasses, but another one never hurts. The following night on Thursday, the Monk will be featuring Duck Rabbit again, only this time it is a cask ale. No pint to take home, but this will probably be the only appearance of their Coffee Stout, a limited release beer not available in bottles. The Monk has been featuring a Cask Ale every Thursday night, and it is definitely worth checking out.

Care to hear some music while you sip your pint? Why not swing by the tasting room for either French Broad Brewery or Pisgah Brewing. French Broad will be featuring local acts Utah Green on Thursday, Dave Desmelik on Friday, and Nikki Talley on Saturday. Or you can head east to Pisgah's tasting room, which has been hosting music for quite awhile now. Thursday night at Pisgah features the Pitch Slickers at 6 pm, followed by Soul Night with Cardeli, which ought to get your booty shaking. Chalwa, a local reggae band, will play at Pisgah on Friday night. Music + cold beer = happiness.

If you are feeling charitable, head on over to Craggie Brewing on Hillard Avenue on Saturday from 2 pm to 7 pm, but don't come empty handed. They are sponsoring a food drive for Manna Food Bank, so bring a couple of non-perishable items to the tasting. Five different beers will be available for sampling.

And of course, the real big event this week is the arrival of Sam Calagione, founder and President of Dogfish Head Brewing Company. Sam is highly regarded in the beer world, and is the author of several books as well as playing the part of beer ambassador to those who have not been converted. The fact that he is coming to Asheville shows that we are definitely on the national map as far as beer (have I mentioned that Asheville is Beer City USA?). The events begin on Friday with two beer tastings at Bruisin' Ales, but you must have tickets for them and they are sold out. Also sold out is the Dogfish Head Brunch at Zambra that is scheduled on Sunday. But fear not, for you can have your chance to see Sam as well as sample some of Dogfish's beer at the Thirsty Monk on Saturday, starting at 7 pm. The tasting menu is terrific, and includes the Burton Baton, the Midas Touch, the Immort Ale (yum), and the Red and White. I suggest heading over there early, and I suspect it will be a crowded event.

Well, if you can't find something to do for American Craft Beer Week, you have no one to blame but yourself. Happy drinking.