QC Beerguy

...and now a new can

2013-04-18T17:33:00.002-05:00

In a new marketing move Budweiser announced yesterday a new can for their flagship beer Bud, http://consumerist.com/2013/04/17/budweiser-worked-really-hard-on-bow-tie-can-shape-because-other-beers-are-so-hard-to-hold/ .InBev has designed a can that is in a bowtie shape to better match their Budweiser logo. It is nothing more than a marketing move to sell more beer. They are aiming this can to the loyal Budweiser drinker. The funny thing is that the can is actually smaller and will be sold in 8 packs, so this means the typical Budweiser drinker will probably pay more for less. I am sure that most of them will not care, because they have a "cool" new can to drink from.

This is just another example of InBev tackling the continued decline of sales of macro-brewed beer while Craft beer continues to grow by double digits. It is unfortunate for InBev that they have concentrated on making beers that are pretty much bland and tasteless, while there is a movement towards beer that has flavor and variety. Another approach InBev has used is to purchase Craft breweries and maintain those brands as "independent" to cash in on the Craft beer growth. This has had some success, like making Goose Island available throughout the United States.

When I go into a liquor store I can not help but wonder why there are so many different packages of Budweiser, Bud Light and so on. Then I realize what it is all about, market share and making the macro-beer drinker feel unique. All of the packages help individualize the drinking experience for the macro-beer drinker, that way they feel that they are not drinking the same beer as everyone else when they actually are. That is what marketing is all about for the macro-breweries.

QC Beer Guy

QC Beer Week

2013-04-17T19:47:00.000-05:00

I wanted to let everyone know about an upcoming event in the QC. Starting May 4th and running through May 12th the first QC Beer Week will be happening. To find more information just head to the following website http://qcbeerweek.com/ . Some of the beer related places involved in the week include: Bent River Brewery, Great River Brewery, Blue Cat Brewpub, Camp McClellan Cellars and Against the Grain Brewery and Alehouse. Hopefully more places will decide to join in the fun. Events will be happening all during this week. Including Big Brew Day on the 4th and a special tapping of a collaboration beer between MUGZ and Bent River. A big thanks goes out to Tim K. for organizing and spearheading the week.

QC Beerguy

Self Update

2013-03-29T18:50:00.000-05:00

I know I have not posted a blog in a while and plan on doing a better job from now on. But first an update on myself and kind of a reason why I have been slacking. With in the last month I have switched my employer and now have a dream job. I am a Craft beer and wine sales representative for Johnson Brothers of Iowa. That means I am now selling craft beer for a living, so yes it is a dream job opportunity. My territory includes the Iowa QC area and Clinton, IA. Some of the brands I represent are Bell's, North Coast, Lost Coast, Left Coast and Twisted Pine.

So needless to say I have been a bit hesitant to blog a bunch about various subjects in beer, since I want to make sure not to do anything to hurt my new employment. With that said from now on anything I talk about will be my own opinion and have nothing to do with my employer. I want to continue my blog but my job will come first, if need to the blog will have to go.

Long live beer and in particular craft and home brew beer!

QC Beerguy.

Valley Inn Alehouse part 2

2013-03-02T10:21:00.004-06:00

My wife and I, along with our daughter and her boyfriend had an opportunity to stop at Valley Inn Alehouse and eat on our way back from First Friday in Le Claire at Mississippi River Distilling. When we arrived it was after 8PM and the place was still busy, but luckily there was a table open so we snatched it. Since they were busy it was a few minutes before our waitress had a moment to get our drink order, but after that she was at the table on a timely basis. When our beers came we were ready to order our food. My wife and I split a burger, our daughter ordered the bacon cheeseburger sliders and he boyfriend ordered a turkey rueben. There are many other delicious looking foods on the menu besides what we ordered and I am looking forward to trying them. Our food arrived fairly quickly and was hot. meaning it came right to us from the kitchen. We all enjoyed our food, the burger was very good but the waffle fries could of been a bit more crispy which is a small complaint.

After our stop here for dinner I can enthusiastically say this is a good place for above average craft beer and good food. It is worth a trip by itself or a stop when you are heading to or coming back from Le Claire.

QC Beerguy

Valley Inn Alehouse

2013-02-28T18:28:00.003-06:00

Recently my wife and I went to the Valley Inn Alehouse with some of our friends and liked what we found. Among our group, my wife was the only one that had been to the Valley Inn https://www.facebook.com/ValleyInnAleHouse?ref=ts&fref=ts before the remodel and she could not believe the changes. The interior was totally redone, no longer a "dive bar" atmosphere. Also they had a good selection of beer on tap and bottled as well and what looked like a good food menu.

From the exterior Valley Inn Alehouse looks about the same as it always has, expect for the outside sitting and smoking area. When we opened the door an above the door blower/heater clicked on to limit the cold air entering, a nice idea. We were quickly greeted and told to sit where we liked. Once we were seated the waitress was there to take our drink order. This took a bit of time since they had a good amount of beer. They have sixteen taps, which I would venture about half are craft beer, and probably 30 or more bottles, with about half craft beer as well. Once we decided on our beers, the next question was what size, 16 or 22? We all went with the larger option. An important thing was that all of the tap beer we had was clean and tasted as it should. Sometimes at an "alehouse" beer can sit in the line and lines are not properly cleaned so the beer can taste unpleasant.

We did not try any of the food options, but a quick look at the menu did lead us to decide we would have to come out some evening to eat as well as to drink. One thing we were cautioned on was that they are busy on Friday nights and do not take reservations, so seating can be at a premium. They also have food specials listed on a blackboard.

The interior is well done with a bar big enough to seat 10-15 people, nice lighting, plenty of tables and booths. The decor is upscale pub/sports bar with a TV everywhere you look. Also they carried over the remodel to the bathrooms.

Located in between Bettendorf and Le Claire this is an option if you are doing anything in the area for some beers and food. We are looking forward to our next visit.

QC Beerguy

Bottom fill cup

2013-02-16T13:48:00.000-06:00

I had been hearing a few people talk about a bottom fill beer cup and had the opportunity Friday night to see it in action. Our local event center has switched over to these beer cups to serve Bud Light beer. My wife and I went with some friends to see our local minor league hockey team play and it was $1 beer night. Which meant that a cup of Bud Light for a $1, so my wife and I decided to go for it.

We walked to the beer line and waited our turn. While in line we observed the filling of the cups. The cup is placed down on what almost looks like a sprinkler head and the cup is filled for the bottom up. Also we noticed that once the cup was full the filler automatically stopped. Once it was our turn we ordered our beers. As our beers were being filled my wife chatted up the beer vendor about the beer cups.

We found out that the cups have two magnets in them, the magnet bottom and a magnet ring embedded in the cup itself. The cups are any thing but perfect, we noticed a few leakers that did not seal properly. Our beer vendor told us that if the cup does not come with the magnet they save them and get their money back. These bottom fill cups are a cool invention, but I am unsure if they will actually catch on without revisions. Namely for me a stronger seal on the bottom between the magnets, several times last night I dripped on my clothes because I inadvertently broke the seal between the magnets by tapping the bottom of the cup. I am sure they are already working on that concern. Here is the website to find more out about this new invention http://bottomsupbeer.com/ .

QC Beerguy

Another new glass?

2013-02-08T18:42:00.000-06:00

As many of you may have noticed, there is a new glass designed for an IPA, http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/07/garden/designing-an-ipa-specific-beer-glass.html?_r=3& . This latest addition to "must have" glassware was designed by Sam Calagione of Dogfishead and Ken Grossman of Sierra Nevada in conjunction with Spiegelau, a German glassmaker. I guess if anyone should design an IPA specific, this group would be toward the top of my list to do it. They have forgotten more about IPAs than most people would ever learn in their lifetime. I am just unsure if it is actually needed.

If you are like my wife and I, we have more than enough glassware all ready between all of the tasting, pint and various other glasses we have in our cupboards. I do believe that many beers are glorified by the glass they are served in, whether it be a Belgian Ale, Hefeweizen or a stout. So I understand that a prevalent style like an IPA could be better served in a specific glass. But come on, we only have so much cupboard space.

Yes we did purchase the glasses that Sam Adams designed to better enjoy their beer and it yes it does seem to better present the beer to the drinker. So the idea of designing a glass for a beer is not foreign, but really is it needed? In a roundabout way I guess it is. And yes I will probably fork over the $25 for a pair of them and add them to our glassware collection.

All I have to say is "Please no more specifically designed glassware" my cupboards can not take any more glassware.

QC Beerguy

QC Nano beers

2013-02-02T16:47:00.002-06:00

In the past week I had the opportunity to try beer from both of the nanobreweries that are working on getting up and running in the QC. At our most recent MUGZ meeting one of our members was able to secure a bottle of each of the Wormburner beers. Since Wormburner is not open yet these were secured without any exchange of money. To find out more information on Wormburner you can visit their Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/WormburnerBrewCo?ref=ts&fref=ts. Also another blog has a bit more information about Wormburner http://franklyfoodblog.blogspot.com/2013/01/wormburner-brewing-company-of-davenport.html?m=1. Check out both.

Now onto the beer. Unfortunately I was not the only one trying these beers and I only had an ounce or two so my description and review will be brief. If I am able to secure more I may be able to do a more thorough review. First up was Smooth Operator: Iowa Pale Ale. It was a hazy orange gold with a white head. The aroma was of citrus hops and was clean otherwise. Taste was a nice malt and hop mixture that was clean from off flavors. The beer did seem to be a bit light in the body and to me could be bulked up a bit. Overall it was a good beer. Second was Dark Side of the Moon: Belgian Ale. It was a deep golden color with a white head. Aroma was of citrus and spices with hints of Belgian characteristics. My friend that brought the beer mentioned that he was told this beer was best served with a slice of orange, which we did not have. The body seemed close to what you would expect from a beer like Blue Moon. Again sorry for the brief review, maybe I can do a more thorough review if I score a couple bottles.

Last Wednesday our friend Rich Nunez, brewer and co-owner of Against the Grain Brewery and Alehouse, tapped his first test batch. To find out more information on Against the Grain visit their Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/pages/Against-the-Grain-Brewery-Alehouse/445902535438203?ref=ts&fref=ts. His first offering was a Belgian Witbier. My wife and I had to share the last 6 ounces from the keg, so again my review will be a bit shy on details. The beer was a light hazy yellow with a good white head. The aroma was of orange and spices with a hint of wheat and spicy notes from the yeast. Taste was pleasant and included orange and various spices. The beer had a medium body. We were pleased with the beer and would of been happy to have a full glass each. Maybe next time. The beer lasted just over a hour, not bad for seven gallons. I am looking forward to batch two and may have to be present at the time of tapping to make sure I receive a full sample.

I am pleased to say that both of the nano-breweries seemed to be heading in the right direction. If these quick tastes of their beer means anything they will be great additions to the QC beer scene.

QC Beerguy

States that consume the most Beer

2013-01-25T15:21:00.000-06:00

I received my latest "All About Beer" Magazine and began thumbing through it and found this cool (at least to me) blurb on the top ten beer consuming states for 2012. It had some surprises to me in the rankings. Many states that would seem to make sense were not even in the top ten. That means no Oregon, Missouri, California, Illinois nor Iowa listed in the top ten. Just because a state produces large quantities of beer or has many breweries in them, it does not mean that state will consume the most beer. Listed below are the top ten states with per person consumption.

1. New Hampshire: 43.0 gallons
2. North Dakota: 42.2 gallons
3. Montana: 40.6 gallons
4. South Dakota: 38.0 gallons
5. Nevada: 36.5 gallons
6. Wisconsin: 36.2 gallons
7. Vermont: 34.7 gallons
8. Texas: 34.6 gallons
9. Nebraska: 34.6 gallons
10. Delaware: 34.3 gallons

Looking at the above numbers a few things stand out to me. First the traditional beer swilling state that most people would think to be on top was only in 6th place; and to my cheddar-head friends "You are slackers"! Second thing that stands out to me is that over half of the states have lower populations, thus their ability to consume that much beer is impressive. Third, evidently people living in the upper Midwest must not have much else to do but drink. Another little factoid I noticed is that all ten of the states drank more than a barrel of beer per person, a barrel of beer is 31.5 US gallons. Or break it down even further that is over 252 pints of beer or another way of thinking is having about a pint of beer 2 out of every three days of the year. So these people are dedicated drinkers. The people of New Hampshire truly do shine in only missing having a pint of beer every day of the year by 21 days, impressive.

Something that came to mind as I am typing is that probably in actuality the real numbers are higher than reported. Since it is a fact people almost always under report how much they consume. So there may be a state that averages a pint of beer a day.

All of these numbers are achieved with an increase of 1.9% of beer shipments and craft beer sales rose by 12%. Craft beer continues to be the fastest growing segment of beer sales. No wonder the big two are purchasing craft breweries and continue to make up craft beer labels. They are trying to cash in the segment of the market that is growing the fastest.

Please support real craft beer and your local craft and micro breweries. Be careful of "craft beer" with ties to the big two, i.e. Goose Island, Windmer, Kona, Magic Hat, etc.

QC Beerguy

Quick QC Update

2012-12-30T11:43:00.001-06:00

Just a quickie on a couple things happening in the QC beer scene this week. First Against the Grain Brewery and Ale house will be having a New Years Eve Dark Horse Release from 4pm to 1 am on the 31st https://www.facebook.com/events/385293361561497/. Second Great River Brewery will be tapping Hop A Potamus on Saturday January 5th, golden keg at 1pm https://www.facebook.com/events/538589626154255/.

Now for a bit of news there is in the works a new nano brewery in the QC area, location is not announced yet. It is Wormburner Brewing Company https://www.facebook.com/WormburnerBrewCo?ref=ts&fref=ts. They mention three beers, an IPA, an APA and a Belgian Ale on their facebook page so looking forward to trying the beers when they are out.

QC Beerguy

Springfield, IL

2012-12-30T11:10:00.000-06:00

My wife and I decided to make a quick trip to Springfield, IL to see some Abraham Lincoln sites and check out a brewpub and a bar or two this past weekend. The Lincoln sites are awe inspiring and helps a person realize what a strong and brave man Abraham Lincoln was. As President he could please no one and was always under siege from the press and detractors. To me he is the greatest President we have ever had.

We only scratched the surface on Lincoln sites. We went to the Abraham Lincoln Museum and Library, a must visit for everyone. We also visited the Lincoln Homestead, the only National Park in Illinois, the Old Capitol and the "New" Capitol. We finished our visit to Springfield by going to the Lincoln Tomb and yes we did rub Lincoln's nose.

Beside the Lincoln sites we did a bit of beer tourism as well. Our first stop was Obed and Isaac's Microbrewery and Eatery http://www.obedandisaacs.com/. Located in the Downtown area it is conveniently located close to the Lincoln sites, so if you want you can do like us and make a late afternoon pit stop. The history of the Microbrewery goes back to the days of the Lincoln era in Springfield. The owners of the brewpub are decedents of the family that was friends with the Lincoln family. To me it is a very cool story.

The building is extensive and has multiple rooms to dine in, the entrance takes you into the bar proper. Which unfortunately us was pretty much filled up so we were seated in one of the rooms off of the bar. The food menu was varied it had sandwiches, flat bread pizza, salads and entree. We just had an order of pretzels and a bowl of beer cheese soup, both were very good. What I saw of the other food that was delivered to other tables, I believe the food overall is very good.

Their beer is available by the pint, 10 oz glass or in a 4 beer sampler. They had nine of their own beers on tap as well as a couple guest taps. We decided to go with a couple of samplers which allowed us to try eight of the nine beers. Their beers run the gambit from light to dark and hoppy to malty.

First we tried the Upside down Brown Ale: 5.5% ABV medium brown in color with a tan head. Hints of spice, pine in the aroma as well as a bready nose. Flavors were dark fruit, dark malt and a nice breadiness. The beer finishes with a good nuttiness. This was one of the beer that stood out to us.

Second Obed's Pride Amber Ale: 5.2% ABV amber color with an off white head. A light caramel and noticeable phenolic aromas. The flavor is much like the aroma, which to me the phenolics detract from the beer. To me as the beer warms it actually becomes more drinkable. Overall a decent beer but not high on our list.

Third Isaac's IPA: 6.1% ABV light copper color with an off white head. Aromas of hops and malt great the nose. Taste is a strong malty backbone with citrusy hops. Medium bodied and the finish is dry and crisp. A good beer but not one of my favorite IPAs.

Fourth Frothbite Winter Ale: 6.6 % ABV dark brown with a tan head. Aroma was of dark fruit, dark roast and coffee. The taste was much the same as the aroma with one exception as the beer warms and unpleasant bitterness is perceived. Also surprisingly this is a light bodied beer. We had great hopes for this beer but were greatly underwhelmed by it.

Fifth Mother Road APA: 4.9 % ABV golden color with a white head. Aroma was low hops and medium malt. Flavors were light hops and malt. Light bodied and had a bit of a "dirty" taste. The beer does liven up as it warms and become more drinkable. Unfortunately for this beer to shine you need to let it sit and warm up, so if you are thirsty this may not be the beer to order for a quick drink.

Sixth Ditzy Blonde: 4.6% ABV light gold white head. Unpleasant aromas of butter and dishwater greet the nose. Taste was of butter as well, but it did have a medium hop presence which was a plus. I would suggest avoiding this beer. I am guessing that this is probably their best selling beer and because of that it is served before the yeast had a chance to clean up after itself and take the butter taste away.

Seventh Silly Pants Stout: 3.9% ABV Black with garnet highlights and a strong tan head. Great aromas of coffee, dark roast malts and a hint of licorice. Flavors are pleasant dark malt and coffee in the start, but ends oddly phenolic which is far from pleasant. This beer looks and smells the part but the flavor lets the drinker down. If the phenolic end could be taken away this could be a good session beer.

Eighth German Alt: 4.6% ABV Ruby brown color with a white head that did not last. Aroma was of prunes and other dark fruits with a light phenolic note. Taste was rich and malty with the prune notes carrying over. Medium bodied beer. This was a hit with us, the second beer that we really enjoyed.

The ninth beer which we did not try was a Black IPA, those of you that know me understand why this one was skipped. For those of you that do not I am not a fan of Black IPAs so I usually avoid them.

We greatly enjoyed Obed and Isaac's and on our next visit hope to have a seat at the bar and enjoy the vibe there.

Next we walked over to Norb Andy's Tarabin http://norbandys.com/ only a few blocks away. This bar has a colorful past, including that at one time it was a speakeasy. Upon entering from street level you walk down stairs into the basement bar. The decor has nautical tones to it but overall it is a comfortable place to be. We were able to have a seat at the horseshoes shaped bar which seats probably about 12-15 people. They have only six taps and up to sixteen bottles of beer. They did proudly serve on tap a fine local beer from Rolling Meadows Brewery, Abe's Brown Ale. The beer was a medium brown color with a tan head. It had a good malty aroma and had a malty flavor with a slight hoppiness and a bit of nutiness. Overall a really nice easy to drink beer.They also had a couple of Rolling Meadows beers in bottles as well Lincoln Lager and Springfield wheat, we did not try either of them which gives us another reason to go back to Springfield.

As I mentioned this is a comfortable bar and we quickly were able to strike up conversations with the bartender, who happens to own the bar with his wife, and the other patrons sitting around the bar. We had a very entertaining evening siting at the bar. I took advantage of one of the beer specials, $1.50 PBRs which was served in a chalice.

The menu is pretty standard bar food with one exception that is a local specialty, a Horseshoe. This is a cardiologists dream. First a layer of toast is laid down, then a layer of meat originally ground beef, then a layer of french fries and topped off with cheese sauce. It is served with a knife and fork and is a glorious mess to eat. No we did not have one but one of the other bar patrons did so my wife could she her first real live horseshoe in person. She had never heard or seen one before.

We were very pleased with the food we ordered. I had a tenderloin and my wife had a burger. The amazing thing besides the good taste of the food was the price of the food. For what you pay for the food it is a great bargain. We will go back to Norb Andy's on our next trip to Springfield. When we finished our food and our beers we called it a night and walked back to our hotel.

We did not make it to a couple of other bars that we wanted to Brewhaus and Floyd's Thirst Parlor, so that means we just have to go back another time. We also did notice a few other bars or restaurants that held promise as well so there will be a next visit. Also we have many more Abraham Lincoln sites to see as well.

QC Beerguy

Beer and Food

2012-12-02T17:18:00.000-06:00

Most people know that red wine goes with heavy foods and meats, where white wine goes well with salads and lighter foods. One can go further and split it even further by certain vintages of wines with in the reds or the whites. Believe or not different styles of beers can be paired with foods as well. Many beer lovers realize that beer with all of it styles actually can be a better match with food than wine.

The best example of this fact is the book " The Brewmaster's Table: Discovering the Pleasures of Real Beer with Real Food" by Garrett Oliver, yes that Garrett Oliver of Brooklyn Brewery fame. Here is a link to purchase the book through Amazon http://www.amazon.com/The-Brewmasters-Table-Discovering-Pleasures/dp/0060005718. This book goes into great depth explaining how beer and food can be paired together. In explaining this Mr. Oliver tells how some flavors and attributes in beer can compliment or contrast with the food the beer is paired with. Some of the beer and food examples he puts forward are classics like oysters and a stout, an IPA with spicy Thai or Mexican foods.

Another book that looks interesting as well is "The Best of American Beer and Food: Pairing and Cooking with Craft Beer" http://www.amazon.com/The-Best-American-Beer-Food/dp/0937381918/ref=pd_vtp_b_3. It seems to be worth a look at least.

Besides these books there are numerous websites that have beer and food pairings. Here are a couple I like http://beeradvocate.com/beer/style_pairings, http://www.craftbeer.com/pages/beer-and-food/pairing-tips/pairing-chart. There are many more if you just google "beer and food pairings".

Once one has learned about pairing beer with food, they can then delight their family and friends with a beer themed meal or a beer and food tasting. It could be something as simple as pairing cheese or deserts with beer or something as complicated as a several course meal with a different beer for each course.

My wife and I have been to a couple beer dinners and have enjoyed them very much. One local brewpub holds a beer dinner approximately each month, our friends at Blue Cat Brewpub http://www.bluecatbrewpub.com/. Dan and Martha do an excellent job pairing food with their beer.

We are trying to figure out a time and menu so we can host our first beer and food tasting. Probably we will start out slow with a cheese and beer pairing or go with a dessert and beer pairing. The most important thing is just to enjoy oneself and remeber it is just beer.

So just do some exploring and find what beer and food sound appealing to you and proceed from there.

QC Beerguy

End of Outdoor Fest Season

2012-10-22T22:46:00.000-05:00

The time has come and the end of outdoor beer fest season is upon us. To me the end usually is filled by attending Oktoberfest in Amana, IA. Our group spent Friday and Saturday in Amana attending games, listening to music, and of course drinking beer. A great time was had by all, even though waking up to cool thirty degree mornings made tent camping a bit of a challenge.
A new event added to our local outdoor fest season, was Iowa's first all homebrew festival put on by CR Beernuts http://www.crbeernuts.org/. They are a homebrew club in Cedar Rapids, IA and the event was at Benz Beverage Depot in Cedar Rapids. CR Beernuts Homebrew Festival was attended by four homebrew clubs accounting for over 50 beers. Needless to say a person could not help but find a good beer that they liked. Overall the quality of the beer was very good and there were few if any beers that a person would dump.
My club was one of the four to supply beer. We had nine beers and a soda; the beers ranged from an American wheat to several flavored beers to dark and dangerous stouts. I supplied a fitting seasonal and a favorite beer of my wife, Betsy's Prized Ale; an ESB brewed with sweet potatoes and spices. All of our beers were well received and I believe the members that were present had a great day.
A wonderful side effect of the event was our trip inside Benz Beverage Depot http://benzbeveragedepot.com/. It was a store that none of us from the QC had ever heard of let alone been in. Once inside it was a very pleasant surprise, they had many quality beers at this place. As one of my fellow club members noted, they carried Founders beers that you cannot find even in Michigan. In my beer store rankings I would place this ahead of John's Grocery but behind Blue Max in Apple Valley/Burnsville, MN.
Yes it is a sad time of the year as the weather turns colder and we cannot enjoy our outdoor fests for another 6-8 months. The good thing is this also means the starting of beer judging season and the start of inside beer fests. So as one season ends another season begins. What a glorious thing beer is!

QC Beerguy

Drinking Age

2012-10-13T08:07:00.001-05:00

With a couple recent birthdays in my family I began to think about the drinking age for alcohol. One of my nephews turned 21 recently and my own birthday happened within the last month. My thought process began with his downplaying of his milestone birthday. He attends a college that is dry and he probably was not even going to go to a bar or restaurant to have a beer or a drink. It is a big contrast to my own 21st birthday, where my fraternity brothers’ whole point was to get me drunk. Needless to say they did succeed in that aspect. These are two very different ways to look at the milestone 21st birthday. I am not saying which is better or even more correct, that is up to your own discretion.
In a review of the drinking age around the globe a person quickly finds that the United States is in the minority with the 21 year old drinking age. The vast majority of countries are around 18 years old. Is this a good thing? Our voted in leaders of our country believe so. I am not convinced. The United States (US) is one of the leading countries for alcoholics, binge drinkers and general alcohol abuse. Countries that have much younger drinking ages have a lesser degree of all of these instances.
So this leads one to believe that by delaying the drinking age to 21 we in the US are actually harming our young adults. Since we delay the important day of drinking to such a late age we actually make it overly important. I believe if we would look at going back to 18 we would be doing our young adults a favor. Especially since at 18 our young adults can join the armed services, vote and smoke. My biggest concern is the denying of the young adults that have decided to protect our country the right to drink. I believe that if they are old enough to die for our country they are old enough to drink.
Our 21 year old drinking age really does not do what it is meant to do, which is prevent under- age drinking. The overwhelming majority of adults have drunk before their 21st birthday. I am not saying that every adult had a binge drinking event before turning 21, but a good amount of us have. Especially those of us that have gone away to college, the rule of "out of sight out of mind" applied to many of us. Meaning we are away from home, we were more likely to give into peer pressure.
As I have learned currently, many teenagers do not even wait to go away to college to drink. The rate of high school and tragically even junior high school age kids is on the increase. Which I believe is due to the high drinking age we have. In countries with lower ages they wean their youth onto alcohol slowly and with reverence. They downplay the importance of drinking alcohol and make it a common occurrence to their youth.
I am not saying that the countries that have lower drinking ages are perfect. They do have problems with youth drinking under age and binge drinking, but they have lower occurrences than the US does. Needless to say there is no perfect way to introduce our youth to drinking alcohol. Even those of us that think we are being progressive and introducing our sons or daughters to properly drinking alcohol can be wrong.

There are always those of us that are predisposed to abusing alcohol no matter what age. There is no perfect age to set forth for a drinking age, but I believe that a younger age than we have currently is a good thing.
So needless to say the debate continues and will be decided about the people we elect to represent us in our government. Unfortunately I do not see a change coming any time soon.

QC Beerguy

September Events

2012-08-29T18:01:00.002-05:00

I wanted to get the word out on a few events upcoming this September in the Eastern Iowa area.

September 2nd, Sunday- Festival of Iowa Beers Amana, IA across the street from Millstream Brewery 1-5pm. Tickets can be purchased online or at Millstream. Things will be a bit different this year with more Iowa based breweries and less Iowa homebrew clubs. Even with that, this will be a fun event.

September 7th, Friday- First Friday at Mississippi River Distilling Company 5:30- 8pm. So far I have not seen any information on what is going on, but I am sure they will have some special preview of one of their spirits.

September 15th, Saturday- Oktoberfest at Great River Brewery 2-6pm. Oktoberfest beer, live music and German cuisine from Bier Stubbe.

September 15th, Saturday- Celtic Highland Games at Centennial Park Davenport, IA 9am-6pm. Not really a beer event, but wanted to get this out there. My wife are looking forward to this with the headline musical act Wylde Nept. This is a fun day of watching the Celtic athletes showing off their prowess.

September 28th, 29th and 30th- Oktoberfest Amana, IA If you cannot make it to Germany for Oktoberfest, this is the next best place. On Friday the tapping of the first keg happens at the Festhall at 2pm. It is a weekend full of music, events, food and beer. If you cannot make it for the full weekend, come when you can.

QC Beerguy

Qc Beer Primer

2012-08-22T20:39:00.000-05:00

This is a guide to beer in the Quad Cities (QC) area, included in this are local Breweries/ Brewpubs, Beer Bars and Restaurants, Homebrew Club and Suppliers and Beer Stores. This is my attempt to be complete and if I left something off it was not intentional.

Breweries/ Brewpubs:

Against the Grain Brewery and Alehouse- https://www.facebook.com/pages/Against-the-Grain-Brewery-Alehouse/445902535438203
As of this posting they are not brewing yet but should hopefully have their own beer for sale within the next few of months. This will be the QC areas first nano-brewery. Soon the people of the QC will be able to enjoy beers from brewer Rich Nunez. Currently they are serving unique craft beers from around the US.

Bent River Brewing Company- http://bentriverbrewing.com/
They now have two locations open and operating. The original brewpub is located downtown Moline only a few blocks from the Mark of the Quad Cities (now know as the I Wireless Center). The tasting room is located just off the Rock Island entrance to Arsenal Island in a former car wash. They are known for their flagship beers the Mississippi Blonde and Uncommon Stout. This was my first place that I really cut my teeth on craft beer in the QC.

Blue Cat Brewpub- http://www.bluecatbrewpub.com/
Own and operated by a brother and sister team this is the second oldest brewpub in the QC. Dan does the brewing while Martha runs the kitchen. They continue to have a good food menu and some interesting and good beers. The interesting thing about Dan is he is self taught brewer and has learned his craft well since he makes some very drinkable beer that I enjoy. They are located in "The District of Rock Island".

Front Street Brewery- http://frontstreetbrew.com/
They also now have two locations up and operating. The tasting room and brewery are located in the Freighthouse in Davenport. The original location is located across from the riverboat casino in Davenport. The brewpub has food as well as their own beer. The food menu is your typical pub food. With the opening of the second location the quality of the beer has improved. No longer brew in the basement of the original location, which was flooded out during one of the many floods of the Mississippi River.

Great River Brewery- http://greatriverbrewery.com/
They distribute into many Midwestern states through use of cans and kegs. The brewery is located just of the Arsenal Bridge in Davenport. Brewers and owners Paul and Scott moved operations from Iowa City to Davenport in December of 2008. Also they have a tasting room in the same building as the brewery; the tasting room was the first of its kind in the QC. They are also home to the QC area's homebrew Club MUGZ.

Bars/ Restaurants:

Against the Grain Brewery and Alehouse- https://www.facebook.com/pages/Against-the-Grain-Brewery-Alehouse/445902535438203
Yes I realize I am listing them twice but until they start brewing they are a really good beer bar that has one of the most unique beer selections in the QC. Currently they are the only bar that has Schlitz on tap in the QC. Yes, I mentioned Schlitz and no, Schlitz is not bad. It is a nice clean tasty American Lager, so give it a shot.

Barrel House 211- https://www.facebook.com/pages/Barrel-House-211/247211661960974
This bar is located only a few blocks from both Great River and Front Street in Davenport. The name to me is a bit of a misnomer since they only have six tap beers, but they do have a good selection of craft and import beers at least 30 in total. They also have a good menu that includes a few twists on the typical pub food.

Bier Stube- http://bier-stube.com/
They have two locations open in the QC Area one in Moline, only a few doors down from Bent River, and the second in LeClaire, IA just off I-80. As you might think this is a German themed restaurant. Besides the good food menu they offer an extensive selection of German, Import and Craft Beer. They hold events at the Moline location several times a year.

Crust- https://www.facebook.com/CrustPizzeriaAndPub
As they name implies this is a pizza place which happen to also have craft and import beer. They are more than your average neighborhood pizza joint. They cook their pizzas in a stone oven, Neapolitan style. They have a good amount of taps and most are craft beers and imports. They offer some unique beers on tap that you cannot find elsewhere in the QC.

Governor's Bar and Grill-
They have two locations one in Bettendorf and the other in Moline. They have been in business for about 30 years and the place is kind of an English Pub. They provide complimentary popcorn and in the shell peanuts. There is an extensive food menu and portions that will not leave you hungry. Most of their tap beers are the run of the mill BMC products, but they do have a decent bottle selection of the mainstream craft and import beers.

Granite City- http://www.gcfb.net/
This is a chain "brewery" that is constantly expanding around the greater Midwest. The food is by far the best part of the "brewery" which to me makes this a restaurant that serves decent beer. Their claim to beer fame is that they have a central brewery and they ship via a converted milk truck to unfermented wort in the restaurants. They do have a mug club and have events for their mug club members throughout the year.

Old Chicago- http://oldchicago.com/
Old Chicago is another chain restaurant that is beer themed. They are a sister company to Rock Bottom Brewery, even though most Old Chicago's do not serve Rock Bottom Beer. Old Chicago is known for the beer tour, which entails the beer tour cardholder drinking 110 beers per tour. After reaching certain milestones the cardholder receives prizes. As well they have mini tours throughout the year. They do have a good selection of craft and import beers, but prices do seem a bit high. For food, they do pizza, pasta and sandwiches; the food is good but the main draw is the beer.

RIBCO- http://ribco.com/
The full name is Rock Island Brewing Company and they are the oldest and best beer bar in the QC. They have around twelve taps which almost all of them feature craft beer. Also they have a very good selection of cans and bottles in the cooler behind the bar. At various times throughout the year they have special tappings of rare or special kegged beers. These tappings involve usually keeping the glass the beer came in. Also they will soon hold their annual beerfest. The food is your typical bar food, but it is tasty none the less. They are located just around the corner from Blue Cat Brewpub in "The District of Rock Island".

Homebrew Club and Suppliers:

MUGZ- http://www.mugzhomebrew.org/
This the only homebrew club in the QC area and since the QC area entails Illinois and Iowa we have members from both states. The full name is Mississippi Unquenchable Grail Zymurgists. Members are of all experiences when it comes to brewing beer. We have extract brewers up to all grain brewers. The equipment the members brew on is a mixture as well from repurposed parts and pieces to some of the best homebrewing equipment money can buy. The main purpose of MUGZ is the gathering of like minded people and enjoying the fellowship and of course the beer! We meet the last Sunday of the month usually at Great River Brewery starting at 2pm. Just check the web site for exact locations.

Camp McClellan Cellars-http://www.campmc.com/
As the name implies this is mainly a wine store, but over the years they have improved the amount of beer brewing supplies. They carry the most common items brewers would need, but do not have the most complete selection. It is a place that will suit your basic needs or if you are missing something for your brew day it is a place you can run to quickly.

Somethings Brewn- http://www.somethingsbrewn.com/
This is the most complete homebrew shop in the QC Area. They are located in Galesburg, so really not in the QC but it is worth the drive. The owners Jim and Mary know homebrewing and can help answer almost any question a homebrewer may have. They also are members of MUGZ so when they come up to the monthly meeting they will bring the orders for MUGZ members.

Beer Stores:

There are no good independent Beer Stores in the QC, but some of the local Hy-Vee Wine and Spirit stores do a good job with beer. I will list some of the best locations: Moline- John Deere Rd, Milan, Silvis and Bettendorf -Devil's Glen. One thing to remember is if you do not see what you want ask the location if they can order it for you. Some managers are more willing to work with you than others, but it never hurts to try.

Hopefully this is a good primer for beer in the QC. I tried my best to cover as many places as possible, if I left something out just let me know.

QC Beerguy

Beer Days?

2012-08-06T20:40:00.001-05:00

Within the last week someone in the beer community has arbitrarily decide that there should be two beer days. Last Thursday was International IPA and Sunday was International Beer Day. I understand that these arbitrary days are all done for marketing reasons and really have nothing to do with beer or a specific style. That it is all about just getting the info out there to raise awareness. So a question that comes to mind is, if this is for PR and marketing why is it not announced better in advance? Both days basically were upon me before I was aware of the day. I really was not aware of either day until I happened to see something on facebook or was texted by a friend about the day. Shouldn’t the days be much better publicized then the day of the event? Also these events are usually not well known out of the homebrew and craft brew circles.

So if these days are for marketing and bringing awareness to beer and beer styles, should these days be more readily available to the general public? Most of the people I know are aware of these days, but if the general public is unaware of these days what good are they? I may not be the best marketing person, but I do know enough that the key to marketing is getting the word out in advance of the event. I think there are some marketing people that need to be shaken up a bit and made aware of what their jobs are.

Another question is what organization or person has decided to make these days anyway? Is there some international organization that is in charge of naming days and assigning the dates? If so they are not doing such a great job either, since these days do not have anything to do with the beer style or beer in general. Or if it is someone in the Craft beer industry is naming these days, they need to do a better job tying them into actual events in beer history.

I am very pleased that there are beer days and an effort to educate people in regards to beer and beer styles. An educated public is important to the growth of the beer industry. I wish the organization that is in charge of these days would be better at the marketing to make these days better and stronger.

Once I did find out about these days, I did go out and properly celebrate! Last Thursday my wife and I did make it over to Against the Grain and we enjoyed an IPA each. Mine was a Firestone Walker's Union Jack, a very good IPA and my wife had Two Brother's Outlaw IPA, a really nice IPA. On Sunday we went to Granite City and had their new beer a nut brown, which was a decent beer.

Hopefully as these beer days continue on and perhaps even grow in numbers they will be better publicized and actually involve some kind of events that will bring some fun into these days. I look forward to celebrating more of these events and perhaps I will be aware of these days more in advanced then the day of the event.

QC Beerguy

Rock Island

2012-07-23T17:21:00.001-05:00

Yes I missed the opening of Against the Grain, because I was out of town. I did have a chance to get there the past weekend to enjoy their beer selection with my wife. All I can say is that we enjoyed ourselves and they do have beers on tap that you cannot normally find in the QC. They are proud of this and are trying to be different. I have been there a couple times since and feel very comfortable here. Rich and Neil make for a good bartending team.

When we left Against the Grain we went down to Blue Cat for dinner. Our friends and I ordered their latest beer Phil, labeled as an American Pale Ale. I did not fully understand the beer and guessing the beers I had before affected my perception, so that means a retake on Phil with a clean palate. I look forward to a retry.

QC Beerguy

Against the Grain Preview

2012-07-08T21:00:00.001-05:00

This coming Tuesday, July 10th Against the Grain Brewery and Ale House will be opening their doors for business. At first they will only have guest beers since they are having their brew system built and it will be about another 6 weeks before it is at Against the Grain. Here is a preview of the beers they will have on tap: Smuttynose Old Brown, New Holland Black Tulip, Leine's Big Eddy IPA, Founder Devil Dancer, Stone's Sublimely Self Righteous Ale, Capital's Hop Cream, North Coast Old Rasputin, Southern Hemisphere 2 x Stout, Bear Republic Hop Rod Rye and Pabst Blue Ribbon. They also will have numerous beers in bottles and cans, like the taps will be beers that you can not normally find. They are looking to be an Ale House know for having beers that you can not normally find here in the Quad Cities.

The bar area features a really cool hand built "L" shaped bar that will seat around 15-20 people and also a few tables and chairs for people to sit and enjoy their beers. As well they will have a game room area that will feature a couple of pool tables, dart boards and a few video games. Both areas will have beside tables and chairs, conversation bars where you can hang out with your friends and solve the world's problems.

So remeber to make it to Against the Grain Tuesday PM after work and check out the place and check out the hard work Rich, Steph, Neil, the contractors and some helpful volunteers put in to make sure that Against the Grain opened. Against the Grain is located at 1340 31st St Rock Island, IL, on top of the hill in Rock Island near Augustana College. They plan to open at 4pm, so an after work stop would be doable.

Hope everyone enjoys the opening and I wish them well on the opening. Unfortunately for me I will be out of town, so my first time there will be next weekend.

QC Beerguy

Against the Grain Change

2012-07-03T06:43:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to get the word out that the owners of Against the Grain had to make a change on their opening. Instead of July 6th they will be opening on July 10th, due to unforeseen delays on preparation. So no beer will be flowing Friday night. Hope no one shows up expecting them to be open.

QC Beerguy

Against the Grain Opening

2012-07-02T18:58:00.001-05:00

For those of you in the QC Area and may be unaware, Against the Grain Brewery and Ale House will be opening this coming Friday night, July 6th. Doors open at 4pm. Just a reminder they will be an Ale House first, since their brewing equipment and licensing of the brewery portion are still not completed. Hopefully they will have both completed sometime this summer. So come on over to Against the Grain Friday night; they are located at 1340 31st St Rock Island, IL. I know my wife and I plan on attending the opening, so I will see many of you there.

QC Beerguy

Trends in Beer

2012-06-28T18:03:00.004-05:00

Today as I was driving down the road I began to think about beer in general and quickly progressed onto beer fads or beer trends. Regardless of calling it a trend or fad, what I was thinking about was how quickly beer styles come into favor and then disappear. At first I was thinking of the current beer trends within the last 10-20 years and mainly dealing with brewpubs, micro and craft breweries. I then realized that beers trends, in the United States, can go back to the at least the mid 1800s. At that time there was an influx of German immigrants to the United States and with them they brought their beer. For the most part that beer was a Pilsner style beer. As the German immigrants became brewers at first on a local scale, then a regional scale and then a national scale, they kept tweaking their beer to appeal to the widest audience. As they did that they also realized they could use cheaper ingredients to make the now mass appealing American Lager. From that start the major breweries of Miller, Schlitz, Coors and Anheuser Busch grew and eventually dominated beer brewing into the 20th century. So a beer trend built several empires in beer.

Now, to my original thoughts.

Today and over the last 20 years craft and micro breweries have been through phases of the "hot" beer trends. When craft beer was beginning to grow in the 1980s and 1990s it seemed like every brewery had core or flagship beers in their portfolio. Those core beers usually were a blonde or American wheat, a pale ale, an amber or brown ale and a stout. These were the beer that everyone brewed and were complemented by a hefeweizen, a fruit beer or even a lager or two. It seemed like every brewery had these and sometimes it was hard to separate beer from one brewery to beer from another brewery. Then an earth shaking beer began to hit the market and spread across the United States…Sierra Nevada's Pale Ale. This was a unique hoppy and malty beer.

With the advent of Sierra Nevada a trend of hoppy west coast beers began. Eventually it evolved into the trend of the West Coast Style IPA. For hopheads like me, this is a heaven sent beer. Every brewery then began to make this style of beer and it became an addition to every breweries core beers.

Beer trends can come and go as well. Some beers have had popularity in earlier times and then fall out of favor. If they fall out of favor long enough these beers disappear and sometimes are resurrected centuries later. A couple of examples of this are Porters, Belgian Wits and a German Gose. As craft brewers search for new flavors they sometimes revive a beer style. Sometimes these revived beers become the latest beer trend.

Also beer trends can be a new "style" of beer as well. Like the Black IPA, Bourbon Barrel Stouts and Belgian IPAs. These beer trends have yet to be officially recognized by the BJCP at styles, but many craft brewers contest have these beers broke out into their own "style" category. If these beers have the staying power they may become their own beer style category. Only time will tell.

Beer trends usually come from the need to experiment and add new tastes and aromas to beer. This is usually done for a couple of reasons. One to just prove that an unusual taste or aroma fits into a beer and people will drink it. A second reason is that the brewer is just trying to outdo his/her contemporary brewers, in other words just to prove that they can brew something no one else can.

As long as there are craft brewers there will always be beer trends. Some beers will take off others will fall by the wayside. So as you travel around keep on the lookout for the next beer trend. Most of all do not worry about if a beer you like is a trend or not; if you like it keep drinking.

QC Beerguy

QC Tasting rooms

2012-06-25T20:25:00.001-05:00

As I have previously noted both Bent River and Front Street have their tasting rooms open and over the weekend my wife and I had a chance to visit both of them. Saturday morning we went to the downtown Davenport Farmer's Market and after walking around a while we made our way to Front Street's tasting room. It is in the Freight House building and looks like your average tasting room. The main feature is the brewing equipment along the back wall behind the bar, there is lots of room between the bar and brewery so neither will conflict with the other. The room itself has well placed tables and chairs as well as the bar stools at the bar. The other main attraction will be the view of the Mississippi River. This is a great place to sit and enjoy a beer or two.

The beer has made a marked improvement over that previously made at the original location in the cellar. The Raging River Pale Ale is now a very enjoyable beer and easy to drink. The Hefe is improved as well. Their brewmaster's special was a vanilla porter, which I enjoyed very much. They are still feeling out their hours, but the info I have received is that they will open at 9AM on Farmer's Market Saturday. Otherwise they are looking at being open at 4 PM on other days. Go check this place out and enjoy the view.

Saturday afternoon my wife and I and another couple met up at Bent River's tasting room in Rock Island. The tasting room looks and feels much different than the original location of Bent River. They did a great job of turning an old car wash into a production facility and tasting room. They also have tables and chairs outside so you can enjoy the beer and smell the ribs cooking across the street at Jim's Rib Haven. The interior of the tasting room is dark, but still comforting in a way. Currently they are still assembling the brewery and plan to have it completed by the end of next week. We received a brief walk through and learned that they have a four barrel system, which will supply both Bent locations, their keg accounts and in the future their bottled beer. I am looking forward to the continued evolution of Bent River's production facility and tasting room.

After a couple of beers at Bent we went up the hill in Rock Island to take a look at Against the Grain's location. We easily found it and just walked around looking inside to get a feel of the place. This also got us thinking more about when they will open. Well we found out Sunday, when Rich made an announcement at the MUGZ meeting. He told the group that their scheduled opening day will be Friday July 6th at 4pm, so needless to say we will be there for the opening. At first Rich and Neil will only be able to sell guest beers, since they do not have their brew system yet. They have made a decision to go with a larger system, so they have ordered a 2 barrel system that they will receive hopefully in 6-8 weeks. Also hopefully they will have all of the paperwork completed so they can start brewing right away.

That is the latest I have on the new tasting rooms here in the QC.

QC Beerguy

Beer Fest this Summer

2012-06-19T16:44:00.001-05:00

Since I wrote on how to survive a Beerfest I figured I should give you a list of upcoming Beerfests this summer. Many of these can be found on http://www.midwestmicrobrews.com/index.html underneath the Festivals link. I have found that this is the most comprehensive list of Midwest Beer Festivals on the web. I will concentrate on Illinois, Iowa and Wisconsin for my list. Also I mention any local tastings held by Hy-Vee here in the QC Area.

Here goes a list of what I know:
Friday June 22nd: 2nd Annual JDRF Specialty Beer and Wine Tasting http://www.hy-vee.com/stores/calendar/detail.aspx?m=6&y=2012&event=41760&s=15

Saturday July 7th: 9th Annual Barrington Brewfest http://www.barringtonbrewfest.com/

Wednesday July 11th: Beer Club at Milan Hy- Vee http://www.hy-vee.com/stores/calendar/detail.aspx?m=7&y=2012&d=11&s=104

Saturday July 14th: Cityview's Brewfest http://brewfestdsm.com/

Saturday July 21st: Milwaukee Firkin Craft Beer Festival http://www.milwaukeefirkin.com/main.html

Saturday July 28th: 3rd Annual Milwaukee Brewfest http://www.milwaukeebrewfest.com/welcome.html

Saturday August 4th: Wheaton Ale Fest http://www.wheatonalefest.com/wheaton-ale-fest.html

Saturday August 11th: Great Taste of the Midwest http://www.mhtg.org/great-taste-of-the-midwest. However tickets are sold out for this event but you can usually find some for sale in the line. People starting lining up around 10:00 a.m.

Saturday August 18th: 5th Annual Oak Park Micro Beer Review http://www.sevengenerationsahead.org/index.php/events/oak_park_micro_brew_review/

Saturday August 25th: Midwest Brewers Fest http://www.midwestbrewersfest.com/

Saturday August 25th: 4th Annual Port of Potosi Brewfest http://www.potosibrewery.com/events_detail.cfm?eventID=39

Saturday August 25th: 3rd Annual River City Beer Festiv-Ale http://www.ribco.com/index.aspx?deid=936

Sunday September 2nd: Festival of Iowa Beers http://millstreambrewing.com/Events.html

Saturday September 8th: 10th Annual Thirsty Troll Brew Fest http://www.trollway.com/EventDetail.asp?ACTION=ShowEvent&EventID=219

Saturday September 8th: Screw City Beer Fest http://www.screwcitybeerfest.com/

Friday. Saturday and Sunday September 28, 29, 30: Oktoberfest in Amana http://millstreambrewing.com/Events.html

I am sure that there are many more that are not on this list, but this is a start. Have a great Fest Session!

QC Beerguy

Surviving Fest Season

2012-06-13T20:33:00.001-05:00

As many of you are aware we are at the beginning of Fest season. From here on out it will seem like there is a beerfest every weekend. For example this weekend I am aware of four Beerfests, none of which will my wife and I be attending. So if you love beer and enjoy going to fests, this is your season.

Some of you that are reading this may have never had the opportunity to go to a beerfest. So I will provide a brief synopsis of a beerfest: a beerfest is usually an event that brings together multiple breweries and distributors to present numerous beers to the people possessing tickets to partake of the beer.

I hope to help you think of ways to enjoy your day at the fest and still be functioning afterwards. So in other words: to keep you from looking like you have never been to a beerfest. First thing is do a bit of research about the fest, where it is, how long it lasts, what you receive with you ticket purchase and what is nearby for afterwards. Also good facts to know are the breweries represented at the fest, as well what type of pours you will receive from each booth. All of this will help you lay out your game plan to make it through the fest. There are a few people that I know that take this prep work very seriously and have color coded laminated sheets for their plan of attack.

Since almost all beerfests have websites with the above information that is a good place to start. Usually the fest will have the information available for the fest goers a week or two in advance. Some even have pdf files that you can print and use to devise you plan of attack. If you do not feel like doing all of the prep work don't worry you do not have to do it if you don't want to. Since some events are big enough for a line before the fest, you will have time to look over the book or flyer that they had out to you in line. Also if you want you can fly by the seat of your pants and not plan, that happens to the best of us. There are times when I have just forged ahead and just went with the flow.

The beer available at the fest varies from light easy drinking beers to special barreled aged high alcohol beers. An interesting way to attack a fest is to stick with one or two styles of beers. At most fests, just tasting all that are available of a style or two will get you your moneys worth. At some of the bigger fests like Great Taste of the Midwest, you may not be able to sample every beer of your chosen style. If you are at a big enough fest you can chose a state or just pick certain breweries that you want to try.

Ok so you are now inside the fest grounds what to do next? At most fests we set up our base site, this includes chairs, blankets and coolers of food and watern provided that the fest rules allow you to bring these items in, so again check the website before going to find out what is allowable inside. So with base camp set it is off to try the beer. Usually my wife and I start off together exploring the beers. Since almost always we are with friends we wind up spending time apart as well. If you get separated don't worry some times that is the best time to find that one special beer.

As the day proceeds and you have hit you bucket list of beers, begin exploring for others. The main thing is to pace yourself, if you plan on going somewhere after the event. There is no way you can try every single beer at a fest unless it is a really small fest, so don't worry about what you are missing out on.

The important thing is to have fun at the fest. So if your well laid game plan does not get accomplished don't worry. Also if possible talk to the brewers at the booths, let them know that you appreciate them being there. At some events this is possible, but at others it is not since all you are doing is backing up a line of people wanting a sample of beer. Another thing to do is keep track of the time, even five hours can go by in what seems to be a matter of minutes.

When the fest is over listen to the event staff and do what they say. They are just trying to make it easy for everyone. Since most fests are held in public places, the fest has a defined liquor license meaning they can only serve beer during the fest hours. So do not try to get that one last beer from a booth as you are leaving. Once outside of the fest grounds make sure your glass is empty, most cities will arrest you for open containers.

Another good bit of advice is have a hotel within walking distance or have a designated driver. No one needs the cost and pain of a DUI! We plan ahead at the fest we attend for a room close by the fest grounds.

Once back to your room make the decision of crashing or continuing to go. In my experience if you crash you do not recover to go out later. Hopefully you paced yourself so you can continue on to enjoy the surrounding area.

So hopefully these are a few useful pointers to help you survive the fest season.

QC Beerguy