Breaking News: Troegs Moving to Hershey

Pennlive.com is reporting that the Troegs Brewery will leave it's home in Harrisburg, PA for nearby Derry.  According to the report, Troegs will move to 200 E. Hersheypark Drive in Derry Township of Pennsylvania.  The property is owned by the Hershey Trust.

Troegs brews some of our favorites - including Hopback Ale and Troegenator Double Bock.  We're not sure how we feel about the move.  On one hand, we're big supporters of maintaining corporate headquarters for the long-term.  On the other hand, Troegs is growing quickly and may need additional space.  Having been to the Harrisburg site we now have an excuse to visit Derry, PA.

We also bring you this Muppet News Flash...

It's OK to Cry Over Spilled Beer

It's been a long couple of days for the men and women responsible for getting beer from the brewery to the local grocers and taverns. 

On Monday, a Budweiser tractor trailer overturned outside Atlanta, GA.  The combined weight of the truck, including the beer and the driver, was 80,000 lbs.  Video apparently shows "amber-colored liquid leaking from the back of the truck and saturating the hot pavement of Interstate 285."  No injuries were reported and it's not clear what type of beer was involved in the incident.

Yesterday, a truck carrying 1,200 cases of beer overturned on I-94 near Chicago, IL.  According to one report "[t]he truck struck a guardrail and a concrete bridge support before rolling over at about 3:15 a.m."  The good news is the driver suffered only minor injuries and the beer was Miller Lite. (Image below from WGN-TV.)

Double Your Pleasure

Thanks to a good friend, the Trusty Assistant and I were able to exercise a get out of jail free card and steal a night out on the town.  With our new found freedom we found a place with so much beer it's actually two places in one.  Birch & Barley/Churchkey recently opened in the Logan Circle neighborhood of Washington, DC. 

Churchkey is the upstairs lounge at the establishment.  As if it's an attempt to prove they are separate establishments, Churchkey does offer a food menu.  More importantly, it offers something like 100 kinds of beer on draft and a nearly-endless list of beer by the bottle.  It's a funky, trendy sort of spot but perfect for a beverage while waiting for your table downstairs at Birch & Barley.

We ordered Allagash White and the Silly Saison.  We've covered Allagash before and the Silly Saison was rather disappointing.  It's a blend of new and old saisons, which is intriguing but it's as if they found all the boring saisons for this experimental brew.  Staff were quite friendly and provided a level of service not easily found inside the beltway.  If there is one disappointment for the entire evening it's that we were not allowed to bring our unfinished Allagash to the dinner table.

Birch & Barley is the downstairs restaurant and equally trendy and funky but with the more distinct "sit down and enjoy your meal" vibe you would expect.  There are two primary ways to enjoy a meal at B&B.  For $55 you can enjoy a five course meal with appropriate beer pairings as determined by the chef.  The only catch being that they ask all members of the party participate to accomodate for the timing of the meal.  We chose "Plan B", meaning we decided to pair our own brews with our meal. 

The food is exquisite and priced very well.  We highly recommend the anti-pasta flatbread - it could serve as an entree.  If you like seafood, the Striped Bass is excellent.  The Grilled Pork Tenderloin makes for good leftovers.  If you don't get dessert you are a fool.  Service downstairs was excellent.  Dustin, if you stumble your way to this blog, thanks for the great service.  Hope we tipped well.

It was a beautiful day in the nation's capital so we sat outside and paired our flatbread with Schlafly Kolsch (say that three times fast - or one time slow).  It seemed appropriate for warm weather and appetisers.  We're not the biggest Kolsch fans but this was pleasantly surprising and certainly worth drinking again.  For the remainder of the evening we settled on Green Flash Brewing Company's Hop Head Red Ale; an American Amber Ale that was a bit heavy for a summer evening but the calm breeze inspired us to have several glasses.

It's safe to say this is our new favorite place to eat, drink, and be merry.  Not surprisingly, it's been the talk of the town and was recently named by the Washington City Paper as one of the top 50 places to eat.  Truthfully, if you go you must experience both Churchkey and Birch & Barley.  Surely the evening would otherwise be less interesting.  One recommendation is to make reservations.  We didn't so we sat in Churckey at the mercy of the red flashing buzzer.  Had we made reservations we would have showed up an hour early and really enjoyed the upstairs.  Of course, now we know and "knowing is half the battle."

DC Brau: Leading the Renaissance in the Nation's Capital

We Dumbarton's Beer strive to bring you cutting edge news and information from the brewing world.  Today, for the first time ever, we actually deliver.  Brandon Skall, co-founder of DC Brau, agreed to an e-sit down with us and we really didn't have to beg very much.

Mr. Skall took a few minutes from what is surely a busy schedule to share some insights about the brewery he is opening with partner Jeff Hancock in January 2011.

Background

DB:  How did Brandon Skall and Jeff Hancock Meet?

BS:  "We met as fans of the local music scene several years ago, when we were both just starting to get into the beverage industry.  After that we went our separate ways.  Jeff moved out west, brewing in Michigan and I stayed here working in beverage sales, distribution, import and marketing.  It wasn't until we were reintroduced at a party that the idea took off."

"Just to add a little more about my background.  I was a fine wine specialist for a local wine distributor for 4 years but most recently I was the Mid Atlantic Regional Manager for a wine and spirits importer based in NYC.  I was responsible for the sales and marketing of my brands in this region as well as designing sales incentives for my wholesalers."

DB:  When did the idea for the brewery come about?

BS:  "I had been contemplating a DC Brewery for quite some time when I re-met Jeff.  I discovered he had the same aspirations and we decided to go for it.  We got to working on a business plan and hired a lawyer and the rest is history."

The Brewery

DB:  Where will the brewery be located?

BS:  "The brewery will be located off of Bladensburg Rd, in NE DC."

DB:  Can you tell us about the brewery system (number of barrels, who designed and manufactured it, etc)?

BS:  "We are ordering a 15 BBL turnkey system from Premier Stainless in San Diego California.  Both Jeff and I were very impressed with the quality of design and construction behind this manufacturer."

The Brew

DB:  When open, will product and merchandise be available for purchase at the brewery?

BS:  "Merchandise yes, in fact we already  have T Shirts for sale on our website.  As for product, not at first.  But we hope to have an on-site and off-site tasting room eventually."

DB:  When will the first of the limited release beers be available?  How will they be named?

BS:  "We will most likely do a limited release sometime next fall.  The goal is to get all three flagships launched in the market before we start any "crazy stuff."  Our seasonal offerings will be named for different neighborhoods throughout the city.  The limited release specialty ales will have no rhyme or reason behind their names...just whatever we come up with at the time, but I assure you they will be fun and witty."

DB:  Do you have a preliminary list of stores, restaurants, and pubs that will carry DC Brau?

BS:  "Yes we do.  I don't want to name them publicly right now but you will be able to find DC Brau across the entire city.  Last summer/fall we collected letters of support from ABRA licensed establishments.  We used these letters in our investor presentations to show the current support for a hometown brewery."

Activism

DB:  We are in the nation's capital and a prominent link on your site is DC Statehood.  Do you expect DC Brau to be active on political and social issues?

BS:  "One thing that makes DC special is that it is the political hub of the nation.  This is the most unique and powerful aspect of DC.  No other city in the country can claim that.  While we don't want to be too political or choose sides, we can't imagine ignoring politics all together.  DC Statehood is one issue we'd like to shed light upon.  We plan on incorporating this into our packaging and our identity.  We are not trying to say something is right or wrong.  We believe this issue is just as much a part of DC as anything.  It is something that everyone who resides here not only identifies with, but is also affected by."

DB:  DC Brau is featuring aluminum cans and will recycle brewery waste.  In what other ways are you hoping the brewery will be "green"?

BS:  "We are hoping to re-capture evaporated water vapor from the kettle boil for initial fermenter rinsing.  We are also giving all of our brewery waste to a local organic practice farm called Burnside Farms located in Haymarket, VA., where they will use the waste for composting and soil conditioning purposes."

Last Thoughts

DB:  What else should we know about you two or about DC Brau?

BS:  "DC Brau will be the first package microbrewery in DC since 1956"

DB:  Want to share any breaking news?

BS:  "Just put down our deposit on our automated canning line."

Here They Come

Living inside the beltway has its perks - focal point of the universe, capital of the free world, 535 out of town guests regularly telling us how to run our local affairs.  For all the positives we have in the nation's capital we are short on microbreweries.  Sure, Foggy Bottom is based in DC but it's brewed in Utica, NY.  Frankly, we're not even sure where you can get Foggy Bottom these days.  The last packaging brewery in the city, Chr. Heurich Brewing Company, closed in 1956.

The Washington Post's All We Can Eat blog tells us that a beer renaissance is brewing.  No less than five breweries are in the various planning stages for the greater Washington, DC metropolitan area (for those keeping score at home it's WDC 3 NVA 2).  Of the five breweries four are scheduled to be brewing by early 2011.  DC Brau expects to be open for business by January 2011.  Chocolate City could be open as early as August.  The Black Squirrel Brewing Company is a couple of years away.  The 28 North Brewhouse will open in Ashburn, VA this autumn.  Finally, Port City Brewery expects to be open by year's end. 

DC Brau has the most information publicly available so we offer a few highlights.  Founders Brandon Skall and Jeff Hancock enjoy good music and good beer. (Don't we all?)  More importantly both have experience in brewing and distribution.  According to their Web site, Hancock served an apprenticeship at Franklin's, brewed at Grizzly Peak and Flying Dog. Skall has extensive experience in restaurant management and the beverage industry.  Skall will be the Yin to Hancock's Yang (there's a joke here somewhere).  They plan to feature Corruption Ale (IPA), the Citizen (Belgian pale ale) and the Public Ale.

We are very thirsty for local swill and it appears our thirst is about to be quenched.

There's No Such Thing as Bad Press

Lady Gaga flipped of fans at a New York Mets game.  Who cares, Lady Gaga is just a poor-man's Madonna and we're talking about the Mets.  Hey, at least she was drinking a beer.

The real news, as always, was occurring inside the beltway.  Yesterday, Politico ran with a story about two White House aids seen topless and drinking at a Georgetown watering hole.  Tommy Vietor and Jon Favreau were hanging out with friends at Old Glory.  Said Politico: "Conservative critics said it showed the young Obama crowd needs to get a clue...West Wing defenders said it showed Obama bashers need to get a life."

Clearly, it was a slow news day in Washington, DC but let's be honest; we're talking about a press aide and speech writer.  These two are not exactly in charge of cleaning up the oil spill in the Gulf.  They're not what you would call "policy wonks."  In fact, they're job is to lie about the policy after it's been crafted by the policy wonks.  They only read Politico to see if they're name made print.  Frankly, if you're going to have employees running around half naked and drinking it should be these guys.  Ahh, the beauty of the 24 hour news cycle.

The folks at Miller Lite and Coors Light continue their marketing genius.  It almost reminds you of the resurgent pony wars in the auto industry.  First the Mustang was reborn.  Next comes the Challenger.  Today, the Camaro is back and better than ever.  Every year the Big 2.5 in Detroit strive to make their ponies out muscle the competition making enthusiasts shrill like little school girls (we confess to being part of this "enthusiasm").

To ensure that the 21-30 (or 18-24) age demographic is distracted from the miserable taste of these brews Miller Lite and Coors Light market the container rather than the product.  There's really no need to change the bottles or cans.  Just show scantily clad women for 30 second increments during the game and the college kids will keep buying the cheap swill.

And while we're on the "we drink it precisely because it's cheap swill" topic.  There's no shame in that for poor college aged people or for the folks at Miller and Coors.  We all grow up and earn more as our tastes get  more "sophisticated".  The good news is that there's always a new generation behind us to fill the gap we might be leaving.  Sure, the generation behind us doesn't get it - they're lazy, tweet too much, elitist, and expect work-life balance and a high salary with no real job experience...wait, this sounds familiar.  Anyway, on to the fun...


The Vortex Bottle.  Designed to make it look like your beer is pouring in a circular motion - like if you were drinking from the toilet.  But it doesn't really do anything, which is evident in the Vortex commercials.  Sure sounds neat though.

The Vented Wide Mouth Can.  It's the same aluminum can but with a wider mouth.  This makes for better chugging at Saturday's frat party.  Faster chugging means you get drunk faster after the football game (or before the game).

They're Back!

The brew kettles are up and running once again at Flying Bison Brewing Company (FBBC).  First reported on their Twitter page, FBBC started brewing yesterday.  According to Twitter and Facebook, our favorite drink Aviator Red is just a few weeks away.  We're hoping they have it out in time for the 4th of July holiday as we'll be in the neighborhood.

More good news reported by the Buffalo News today: "All of the paperwork is signed and filed, and the sale of Flying Bison Brewing Co. to the Utica-based maker of Saranac beer is all but official, awaiting Matt’s licensing approval in Buffalo."  This will allow FBBC to increase capacity to almost 7,000 barrels.  Just like the early days FBBC will only be available in draft in the short-term but bottling is coming back.  So, we will not be bringing any back inside the beltway when we return but we'll scout out the restaurants of WNY while we are there.

To Ryan, Paul, and Colin we give you a virtual high-5!

Our Coverage of the Pacific Northwest Continues

We are fairly certain the micro-brewing is the greatest thing to happen to the Northwest corner since alternative music.  Pour some out for Layne Staley before reading this post (make a donation).  Our Midwest Correspondents report...

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Chuckanut and Chewy Salmon in Bellingham, WA


Last week I found myself in Bellingham--a port city that is 90 minutes north of Seattle and the seat of Whatcom County. Bellingham is also seat to two respectable breweries: Chuckanut and Boundary Bay. After stowing my luggage in my room at the Bellwether Hotel, I bee-lined it to Chuckanut Brewery & Kitchen, 2009 recipient of the Small Brewpub Award from the Great American Beer Festival (GABF). I felt instantly at ease at the Chuckanut--the setting is casual and unfussy. The beer, however, is far from casual. The Helles Lager (30 IBU) was crisp and refreshing (and, I will add, paired nicely with a cup of seafood chowder from the kitchen).


Boundary Bay, which I visited the next day, is a larger beer hall/restaurant located in downtown Bellingham. I ordered up a pint of Bellingham Blonde, medium bodied, very respectable. For food, I ordered the salmon, which was a gorgeous shade of deep coral. The texture was, errr, ummm, more chewy than I prefer. And although I had to send the salmon back, I consoled myself with a follow-up pint of the Blonde, after which this redhead beat a hasty retreat to the Bellwether.
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Breaking News: FBBC Coming Soon!

According to the twitters and Facebooks, Flying Bison is coming soon! 

Flying Bison posted this on their Facebook page:  "We are expecting tractor trailers full of malt, hops, yeast and other brewing supplies in the next few days and YES, WE WILL BE BREWING VERY SOON!  Stay tuned and thanks for hanging in there with us.  Cheers!"

We also bring you this very important Muppet News Flash!

Going Rogue in Portland

Our Midwest Correspondents are back - this time with a review of the wonderful offerings of the Pacific Northwest; arguably the best part of the country for microbrew geeks.  Sarah Palin has nothing on today's post.  Oh, and you cannot see Russia from this blog.

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Portland, Oregon has more breweries than any other city in the world, so what better place to spend Memorial Day weekend.  Following is a brief rundown in order of the breweries and pubs we hit in a 2 1/2 days - so many more we wanted to try but our livers said otherwise.

Deschutes Most breweries are all about the hops in Oregon but Deschutes has a large and diverse selection of beer.  One of my favorite beers of the weekend was also my first - Bee Gone Saison, a fruity and just-malty-enough farmhouse ale.  We also really dug Miss Spelt Hefeweizen with its aroma of bubble gum and banana.
 
Rogue The original mecca for beer geeks does not disappoint.  You enter a messy storefront area stacked with cases of bomber bottles.  As it was Friday afternoon, there was a steady line of patrons lining up to buy beer for the weekend.  At the bar, there were over 15 Rogue beers on tap.  I tried a tasting of Mom's Hefeweizen (a bit too pithy), Tracktown Honey Orange Wheat, Issaquah White Frog, and John John Juniper (both Tracktown and Issaquah are breweries owned by Rogue in the area.)  Expected John John to taste like a Christmas tree but it was quite refreshing with just a hint of pine.  White Frog, on the other hand, tasted like a cup o' Christmas with its heavy nutmeg flavor - a bit jolting for the summer.  This location also brews award-winning gin but we decided not to risk adding spirits to our intense drinking schedule.

Henry's Tavern  Although not a brewery, Henry's is a haven for beer lovers with over 50 craft brews on tap.  I fell in love with Vertigo Brewing Apricot Cream Ale.  From the subtle fruity scent to the smooth yet hoppy apricot flavor, this was a winner.

On Saturday we drove down to Corvallis so the husband could see the quaint little Beavers football stadium.  We then drove up through Willamette wine country as I do love a glass of Pinot almost (but not quite) as much as a beer.  What was cool about visiting the small wineries was that many of the wine guys also love or brew beer - when they saw the husband's Rogue t-shirt,  we received helpful (and varied) suggestions on what breweries to check out in Portland.

Golden Valley Brewery Before we hit the wineries, we stopped at this brewpub in McMinninville.  In addition to brewing beer, the owners also have a farm and provide the meat for the pub.  We had an amazing pork sandwich accompanied by a tasting of their 9 brews on tap with Muddy Valley Oatmeal Stout standing out.
 
Heater Allen We found Heater Allen in an industrial row of what looked like storage units that were only open for the Memorial Day festivities.  We picked up 4 big bottles to drink that evening while we watched the Blackhawks.  The beer wasn't as interesting as the game except for the Isarweizen.

Hopworks Urban Brewery  After the big win, we hit this recommended organic brewpub for dinner and another beer to celebrate.  The entire facility is green, down to the recycled bicycle lighting and excellent, local ingredients pizza we had for dinner, accompanied by a malty Velvet ESB.

Lompoc  Woke up Sunday morning and hit the divey New Old Lompoc bar and brewery.  Amidst the smells from the previous evening, had a refreshing Heaven's Helles and tasty guest brew Caldera Ginger Pale Ale.

McMenamins Rams Head  Down the street, hit one of the numerous McMenamins locations in the city.  Had their delicious and beautifully-colored raspberry ale, Ruby.  Usually I am not a fan of this fruit in beer because of its cloying sweetness, but Ruby is tart and yummy.

Migration  After lunch we hit the newest microbrewery in city, just opened a week earlier, with only one beer on tap so far - MPA (along with a nicely edited guest brew list).  They have a great patio so the place will be rocking during the summer.

Lucky Labrador  This is my favorite brewery in Portland, not because of the beer but because of the laid back vibe.  They have a great dog-friendly patio in back and you can throw peanut shells on the floor inside.  The beer is a bit too heavy and hoppy but we made do with the Hellraiser ESB and Black Lab Nitro Stout.

Green Dragon  This is an amazing place to try Northwest craft brews that you don't see in the Midwest or Eastcoast.  They have a front 20 and a back 30 of only the most interesting beers on tap.  By the time we hit Green Dragon, we could only try one, our last beer of the trip.

We ended our stay with an amazing dinner at Le Pigeon and some wine.  I could also go on about the farm-to-table mantra of so many restaurants in Portland but that is for a different blog.
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