SAVOR: Craft Beer & Food Experience - Returns to Washington DC June 3 & 4

‘PHOTO © BREWERS ASSOCIATION’

SAVOR New Experiences in Craft Beer

America’s Premier Craft Beer & Food Pairing Event Returns to the Nation’s Capital

What: SAVOR^SM: An American Craft Beer & Food Experience, presented by the Brewers Association (BA), will take place in DC again this year. Recognized as the nation’s premier craft beer and food pairing event, SAVOR, in its ninth year, unites thousands of craft beer and food lovers for a unique culinary experience.

Along with indulging in distinctive craft beer and culinary creations from a diverse lineup of 76 small and independent craft breweries, guests will be able to mingle with the remarkable personalities behind the craft beers being served.

                        When: Friday, June 3 and Saturday, June 4, 2016

7:30 p.m. – 11:00 p.m. ET

‘PHOTO © BREWERS ASSOCIATION’

Where: National Building Museum
401 F Street NW
Washington, D.C. 20001

Who: Small and independent craft brewers from around the country

·    28 states and Washington, D.C. are represented

·   50 percent of breweries are first time SAVOR participants

·    70 percent of the participating breweries were not at SAVOR last year

 

Chef Adam Dulye, Brewers Association executive chef and co-author of CraftBeer.com’s Beer & Food Course, created the food pairing menu with collaboration from several world class chefs, Cicerones and Brewers Association staff.

 

Why:With craft beer continuing to grow in popularity and new breweries emerging daily, the industry has gained increased traction in the culinary sphere. SAVOR embraces this synergy by bringing together some of America’s finest food and craft beer pairings, all curated by Chef Dulye, in order to draw attention to the diverse offerings craft brewers continue to present us with. Attendees will be able to sample appetizers and craft beers from 76 different small and independent craft brewers. Additionally, SAVOR gives guests the opportunity to broaden their knowledge in the tasting Salons; these directed educational experiences provide thought-provoking information and discussion on a variety of craft beer topics.

                       Ticket  Member Pre-Sale*: March 22, 2016

                        Info:   Public Ticket Sale: March 23, 2016

* Note: You must be a Brewers Association or American Homebrewers Association member by 5:00 p.m. MT on March 13, 2016 to participate in the member pre-sale.

Grand Tasting Ticket ($135 per ticket, one evening Friday or Saturday) includes:

·   Craft beer and food (small plate) pairings—a variety of food items and two-ounce tastings of craft beer

·     The opportunity to meet and talk with many luminaries and innovators of the craft beer world

·       A commemorative tasting glass

·       An event program with room for tasting notes

·       An exit gift

Grand Tasting + Salon Package Ticket ($155 per ticket, one evening Friday or Saturday + one Salon) includes:

·      Entrance to Grand Tasting

·       One private tasting or education Salon of your choice. Review the Salon schedule to identify your preferred selection in advance of the ticket sale.

‘PHOTO © BREWERS ASSOCIATION’

SAVOR ticket sales are limited to two tickets per night, per order. There is limited availability.

 

*Admission to each Salon requires a separate salon ticket and is limited to those who have already purchased a General Admission ticket for that evening.

2016 Extras: Collaboration beer: Deschutes Brewery in Oregon and Allagash Brewing Company in Maine came together to brew Pettygrove’s Chance exclusively for SAVOR attendees. The beer celebrates Francis Pettygrove, who named Portland after the port city in his home state of Maine, forever connecting the two states. Each attendee will receive a bottle of this special beer as an exit gift. Better-than-ever food pairings: This year’s menu features more extensive expert input and more creative ingredients than ever. Read more about the menu development process on the SAVOR website.   Website: SavorCraftBeer.com

                   

                         Note to For media inquiries, please contact Abby Berman at

  abby@rosengrouppr.com.

Sponsors: SAVOR is made possible by a group of generous hosts, partners, breweries and supporters.

 

About the Brewers Association

The Brewers Association is the not-for-profit trade association dedicated to small and independent American brewers, their beers and the community of brewing enthusiasts. The Brewers Association (BA) represents more than 70 percent of the brewing industry, and its members make more than 99 percent of the beer brewed in the U.S. The BA organizes events including the World Beer Cup^SM, Great American Beer Festival^®, Craft Brewers Conference & BrewExpo America^®, SAVOR℠: An American Craft Beer & Food Experience, AHA National Homebrewers Conference, National Homebrew Competition and American Craft Beer Week^®. The BA publishes The New Brewer magazine and its Brewers Publications division is the largest publisher of contemporary and relevant brewing literature for today’s craft brewers and homebrewers.

Beer lovers are invited to learn more about the dynamic world of craft beer at CraftBeer.com and about homebrewing via the BA’s American Homebrewers Association. Follow us on Twitter.

13 Virtues Brewing Hires New Brewer

Courtesy 13 Virtues Brewing CO

Portland, OR – March 17 – Today 13 Virtues Brewing would like to announce the hiring of Cameron Fisher as head brewer, replacing the departed David Vohden.

Born in Texas but raised in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, Fisher graduated from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in 2009 with a degree in Food and Beverage Management. In 2011 he won a Best in Show award for his Belgian IPA at a homebrew contest at Aurora, Colorado’s Dry Dock Brewing Company. All seven barrels of his beer produced at Dry Dock subsequently sold out in a week and a half. In May of 2013 Fisher joined the crew at Odyssey Beerwerks in Arvada, Colorado, as a beertender. He quickly moved up the ranks to become assistant brewer, and helped put in place many SOPs for the 15-barrel, 135-barrel fermentation capacity brewhouse. Shortly thereafter he began brewing most of the company’s lineup, and was integral in recipe development. One of his recipes – Fluffy Pumpkin, a toasted marshmallow pumpkin porter – is still canned seasonally. While brewing at Odyssey, Fisher and staff won a gold medal (Czech Lager) and two bronze medals (Hefeweizen) at the Colorado State Fair Craft Beer Competition.

Fisher is inspired by hoppy, West Coast-style beers as well as traditional Belgian styles. He cites Stone, Allagash, and Ommegang as some of his influences.

Steve Moore opened Philadelphia’s Steaks & Hoagies in 1987, and in 1994 became the 14^th licensed brewery in the state of Oregon. In September of 2014 the Sellwood/Moreland location was rebranded as 13 Virtues Brewing Company, and in October of that year won a Silver medal at the Great American Beer Festival for Woozy Weizenbock.

Oskar Blues B. Stiff & Sons Old Fashioned Soda Pop Announces New Flavors

Courtesy of Oskar Blues &  B. Stiff and Son's Old Fashioned Soda Pop CO

Longmont, CO - B. Stiff and Son's Old Fashioned Soda Pop Company - the kid-friendly branch of the Oskar Blues family tree - is introducing four new flavors of craft soda to their product lineup after years of serving the popular B. Stiff & Sons Root Beer, the top-selling local craft Root Beer in Colorado.

The soda was named for Brian Stiff, a Lyons, CO local, bike-riding buddy and father of two, who passed away unexpectedly in February 2012. A portion of soda proceeds continue to provide support for the Stiff family.

The four new flavors of small-batch sodas include: zingy Ginger Beer, citrusy sweet Orange Cream, redonkulously smooth Cream Soda, and sweet-and-tart Black Cherry - old-school flavors that the B. Stiff wizards reinvented with their own creative twists. The original Root Beer recipe is revamped as well, with a 20% reduction in sugar - a change made in response to root-beer loving consumer feedback. All B. Stiff & Sons products are gluten free and caffeine free.

"After years of serving our popular, home-brewed root beer in Oskar Blues restaurants, expanding the flavors and offering it with the advantages of the can package is something unique in craft soda," said Sales Manager Geoff Hess.

B. Stiff & Sons is proud to offer these new flavors at top independent retailers throughout Colorado, Wyoming, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia; as well as at multiple large grocery retailers starting April 1^st. The full line-up will remain available at all Oskar Blues restaurant locations; Oskar Blues Home Made Liquids and Solids, Grill & Brew, CHUBurger, CyclHOPS and the new Denver, CO RiNo locations of CHUBurger and Hotbox Roasters Coffee Shop set to open in June of 2016.   

"We're projecting approximately 643% growth in 2016 based on current success and enthusiasm," said Hess. "We've begun expansion in our brewing facility that will allow us to continue to be inventive with new creations."

Follow B Stiff & Sons soda via www.oskarblues.com or FACEBOOK & TWITTER.

Courtesy of Oskar Blues Brewing CO

About Oskar Blues Brewery

Founded by Dale Katechis in 1997 in Lyons, Colorado, Oskar Blues Brewery launched the craft beer-in-a-can apocalypse with hand-canned, flagship brew Dale's Pale Ale. Today, Oskar Blues is one of the fastest growing breweries in the country and operates breweries in Longmont, Colorado and Brevard, North Carolina, while producing 192,000 barrels in 2015. The original canned craft brewery continues push innovation with the announcement of an Austin, TX brewery in April of 2016 and creations like The Crowler while it distributes to 49 U.S. states, Washington, D.C., as well as parts of Canada, Sweden, and the U.K.  

In 2013, Oskar Blues founded the CAN'd Aid Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit public charity that offers grassroots grants to those making a difference in the areas of community, the environment, music, and more. In 2015 alone, CAN'd Aid partnered with 52 organizations and provided nearly $400,000 in charitable contributions, bringing the total amount raised $1.9 million to date. CAN'd Aid's "do-goodery" efforts include: 

• Towns - building strong communities
• Tunes - for your eyeholes and earholes
• Treads + Trails - get outside and get after it
• Love Yur Mama - save the blue marble

To keep up with all things Oskar Blues, visit http://www.oskarblues.com.

Reuben's Brews And Bale Breaker To Release CollaBEERation On March 22

Courtesy of Reuben's Brew

Craft breweries from Seattle and Yakima team up to brew an India Pale Lager

SEATTLE, Wash. (March 17, 2016) – It’s east of the Cascades meets west on the brew deck! Last month, Yakima’s Bale Breaker Brewing Company traveled to Seattle’s Reuben’s Brews to create brewing magic. The result? CollaBEERation India Pale Lager (IPL), which makes its debut on Tuesday, March 22 in the Reuben’s Brews taproom at 5010 14^th Ave NW in Seattle.

“I stopped by Bale Breaker’s taproom while I was in Yakima last year during hop harvest,” says Adam Robbings, Co-Founder and Head Brewer of Reuben’s Brews. “After chatting with two of Bale Breaker’s co-founders, Meghann Quinn and Kevin Smith, whie drinking their delicious beers, we decided we should brew a beer together. It’s really exciting to collaborate with their awesome team!”

When it came to deciding what to brew, they knew that whatever style they chose should showcase the hops that grow so plentifully in eastern Washington. After some discussion, they agreed to an IPL, which neither brewery had made before.

“We were pumped to have the chance to brew with Adam and his team at Reuben’s Brews, and especially to try a new style that we had never had a chance to brew before at Bale Breaker,” said Quinn.  “Since we’re located on a hop farm, we love showcasing the hops that the Yakima Valley has to offer in our beer.  Pairing our style with the house lager yeast at Reuben’s Brews is a CollaBEERation that we were excited to be a part of!”

An India Pale Lager (IPL) is similar to an India Pale Ale (IPA) except that IPLs use lager yeast which adds a smooth crisp body to the beer, and produces less esters which allow the hops to shine through brightly. IPAs use ale yeasts.

CollaBEERation pairs Reuben’s Brews’ house lager yeast strain with a light pilsner malt base and plenty of hops! The brew features Citra, Mosaic, and the experimental hop HBC344, which features berry notes that will work well with the Mosaic and lager character. It was dry hopped multiple times with Citra, Azacca and more Mosaic hops. In all, this beer contains more than 4 pounds of hops per barrel and exudes tropical fruit, citrus and pineapple notes.

The two breweries will be collaborating to release the beer as well. Representatives from Bale Breaker will travel to the Reuben’s taproom in Seattle for the March 22 release party, and the team from Reuben’s will travel to Yakima to return the favor at the Bale Breaker release on March 24. Colla-BEER-ation will be available on tap and in 22oz bottles at each release party. Bottles will also be available in limited distribution around the state.

Courtesy of Bale Breaker CO

About Bale Breaker Brewing CompanyBale Breaker Brewing Company is the newest craft brewery to open in the heart of our nation’s hop country, but while the brewery is new on the scene, the family behind the beer is not. The great-grandparents of owners Patrick Smith, Meghann Quinn, and Kevin Smith first planted hops in the Yakima Valley in 1932, the year before Prohibition ended. Now, 82 years later, their love of hops and passion for craft beer has led them to where they are today – in the midst of running a 30-barrel production brewery and taproom surrounded by their family’s hop fields, just down the road from where they were born and raised. Visit www.balebreaker.com or on Facebook and Twitter.

Courtesy of Reuben's Brews

About Reuben’s BrewsReuben’s Brews, makers of “Bloody good beer,” is a small, family-owned brewery located in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle, WA. Since opening in 2012, Reuben’s has won Gold and Bronze medals at the 2015 Great American Beer Festival, over 30 World Beer Championships medals and was named Mid-Sized Brewery of the Year at the 2015 Washington Beer Awards. Its expanded taproom and production brewery opened in May 2015. For more information, visit www.reubensbrews.com or follow on Facebook and Twitter.

Victory Brewing Company Brings Back Kirsch Gose and Sour Monkey

Courtesy of Victory Brewing Co

Downingtown, PA, March 10, 2016- Victory Brewing Company (Victory) announces the long-awaited return of Kirsch Gose, their refreshingly imaginative cherry fruit session ale and Sour Monkey, their sharp twist on their Belgian-style Tripel, Golden Monkey. Sweet, tart, salty and refreshing, Kirsch Gose incorporates natural tart cherry juice with a classic German-style gose while Sour Monkey incorporates multiple fermentations via three different yeasts to create an exhilarating flavor combination. The introductions of Kirsch Gose and Sour Monkey last year made waves in the craft beer world when both existing sour beer lovers and newcomers to the style embraced the new seasonals. The new brews quickly became sought after, in demand warm weather beverages.

Courtesy of Victory Brewing Co

Kirsch Gose was a new release for Victory in 2015 and their first bottled gose. The reaction from fans and critics was immediate and the limited release remained highly coveted throughout the summer and into the fall. Receiving 91 points from Wine Enthusiast, Kirsch Gose was described as “lively, bright and extremely effervescent …with raging acidity and a hint of salinity holding onto the finish.” With its sharp, slightly sweet cherry flavors against flavorful briny notes, the brew is a modern twist on a traditional German style that dates back to the 1500s. Victory pays further homage to gose’s German roots by using the German word for cherry, aka ‘kirsch’, right on the label of its beloved standout seasonal. The kirsch adds a sweet element that creates a pleasantly sharp balance of flavors. Featuring a variety of wheat malts, Czech-grown Saaz hops and natural cherry juice from King Orchards of Michigan, Kirsch Gose creates a distinctly bracing, light-bodied beer with an ABV of 4.7%.

Courtesy of Victory Brewing Co

Sour Monkey is also returning for year two. The sour, Brettanomyces-infused Tripel is a transformation of Victory’s beloved and GABF Gold Medal award-winning brew, Golden Monkey. Sour Monkey combines juicy Tettnang and Hallertrau whole flower hops with Pilsner malt and coriander seed before adding the fun and funk of non-standard yeast varieties. These yeasts are known for their volatility and are often left out of the brewing process due to their hard to control nature. However, the brewers at Victory have harnessed the power of the yeast with a unique recipe, fermentation control, and final blending within the brewing process, to create exciting, savory nuances. With an ABV of 9.5%, Sour Monkey delivers a punch with the pure taste of Victory.

Available April 1 throughout Victory’s 37 state distribution footprint, Kirsch Gose’s suggested retail price for a 12 oz. four-pack is approximately $9.99, but varies upon location and is also available on draft. Sour Monkey will be available July 1 in 750 ml bottles and the suggested retail price is approximately $9.00 and is also available on draft. Use Victory’s Beerfinder to discover a nearby location, or download the free Victory Mobile app for Android or iPhone.

“We’re thrilled to bring back Kirsch Gose and Sour Monkey. We thought we had created two uniquely delicious ales and the customer response loudly echoed our belief,” said Victory’s Founder and Brewmaster, Bill Covaleski.

About Victory Brewing Company
Victory Brewing Company is a craft brewery headquartered in Downingtown, PA. Founded by childhood friends, Bill Covaleski and Ron Barchet, Victory officially opened its doors in February of 1996. Victory’s second state of the art brewery opened in February of 2014 in Parkesburg, PA to serve fans of fully flavored beers in 37 states with innovative beers melding European ingredients and technology with American creativity. In addition to the original Downingtown brewpub, Victory’s second brewpub is in Kennett Square, while Parkesburg recently launched self-guided tours and the third brewpub. To learn more about Victory Brewing Company please visit www.victorybeer.com.

No-Li Brewhouse Raises a Pint on Armed Forces Day

Courtesy of No-Li Brewhouse

Spokane, WA…With spring in the air and Get Lucky Small Batch in the books, beer enthusiasts will have yet another opportunity to experience one-off experimental No-Li beer recipes brewed with No Boundaries on the river! 

No-Li Brewhouse is excited to announce the Red, White & No-Li Small Batch Festival on Saturday, May 21st from 11am - 3pm! 

"We support our troops and a hometown sense of place for the women and men of the U.S. military and the Spokane community at No-Li Brewhouse," says owner, John Bryant.  "The Red, White & No-Li Small Batch Festival shares the date with National Armed Forces Day and we are proud to emphasize the importance of the local military in the fabric of Spokane.” 

To highlight the importance of community, No-Li teamed up with hometown Graphic Designer, Chris Bovey.  "Chris captured what it means to be grounded in Spokane," mentioned Bryant. "Chris’ Red, White & No-Li design demonstrates a spirit of celebration, craft beer and our community!"

     

For a $15 entry fee, guests will receive access to 8+ specialty brews, a commemorative t-shirt, pint glass and 5 drink tickets! Additional drink tickets and 10oz pours will be available for purchase throughout the event.

While 20 tickets will be set aside for members of the Armed Forces, space is available for just 300 people! Spots can be secured in advance by purchasing tickets at the pub or online through the link below:

­­­bit.ly/nolismallbatchfest

Stay tuned, folks! No-Li plans to reveal their specialty beers as the festival gets closer!

 

Courtesy of No-Li Brewhouse

About No-Li Brewhouse

Born & Raised in Washington’s Inland Empire, No-Li Brewhouse is an internationally award-winning brewery, crafting Spokane-Style beers with No Boundaries: innovative beers brewed with locally sourced ingredients. No-Li has won sixteen international awards, including a gold medal from the 2012 Great American Beer Festival.  For more information about the beers, brewery and the pub, visit www.nolibrewhouse.com, or follow us on Facebook/Twitter/Instagram @nolibrewhouse.

Alaskan Brewing Introduces New Boundary Range Hop Pack

Courtesy of Alaska Brewing

Hop-lovers rejoice! Full range of favorites now available together in one bo

JUNEAU, Alaska (March 16, 2016) – Beer drinkers will soon see a new Alaskan Brewing Company 12-pack on the shelf – and it will give them a whole range of hop-centric flavors from which to choose. The Boundary Range Hop Pack features some of our bestselling hop-forward beers, a double IPA and even a beer that cannot be bought in any other package.

“It’s no secret that there are a ton of hop-heads out there looking to explore a wide range of taste variations, and that’s exactly what this new Hop Pack lets them do,” said David Wilson, head of Quality Assurance at Alaskan. “We decided to not just make this Boundary Range variety pack hop forward, but we upped the ante by including Hopothermia and Big Mountain.”

Hopothermia is Alaskan Brewing’s Double IPA that is typically sold in 4-packs. Introduced as a year-round product in 2014 it quickly garnered attention for its ability to balance intense hop flavors with a deep malt backbone and 8.5% alcohol by volume. Big Mountain Pale Ale was introduced as last year’s spring seasonal beer, and fans of the brewery have been very vocal in demanding that it come back. Big Mountain will only be available in the Boundary Range Hop Pack.

Courtesy of Alaska Brewing

“We are excited to be bringing Big Mountain back for this package, and I think our fans will have a great time comparing all the beers in the Hop Pack,” said Wilson. “It’s fun to experience the wide variety of taste and aroma combinations that can happen in these beers, which are using some of the most sought-after hop varieties, concentrating on Pacific Northwest hops.”
Rounding out the Hop Pack are Icy Bay IPA and Freeride Pale Ale, two of Alaskan Brewing’s most popular beers. Among the many hop varieties included in the beers of the Boundary Range Hop Pack are Cascade, Bravo, Calypso, Citra, Centennial, Amarillo, Simcoe and Mosaic hops.

The Boundary Range of mountains separates Southeast Alaska from British Columbia – peaks of the range form a chain that create the international border between the U.S. and Canada. They are considered a sub range of the Coast Mountains, and some of the highest peaks include Mount Ratz, Devils Thumb and Devils Paw in the Juneau Icefield. These peaks rise from the seafloor above Inside Passage waters, revealing sheer faces of more than 10,000 feet.

The Boundary Range Hop Pack is Alaskan Brewing’s second variety pack joining the very successful Sampler Pack, and it will be available in all 17 states where Alaskan beer is distributed.

Courtesy of Alaska Brewing

For more information, check out Alaskan Brewing’s website at www.alaskanbeer.com.

Our Mutual Friend Brewing Company Crafts Cross-Country Beer Made By Walking Collobration

Denver, CO - Our Mutual Friend Brewing Company, who assisted in coordinating and hosting the Denver Beers Made By Walking festival in 2015, will be releasing a Beers Made By Walking cross-country collaboration beer for Collaboration Fest in conjunction with Fullsteam Brewery (Durham, NC), Scratch Brewing Company (Ava, IL) and Hopworks Urban Brewery (Portland, OR). Beers Made By Walking invites brewers to create place-based beers inspired by native plants identified on trails and all four breweries involved in this project have taken part in its programming and creative process. These four breweries are some of the most innovative and place-based epicenters of local culture in the brewing scene across the entire country.

Courtsey of Hopworks Urban Brewery

This particular beer, named Golden Fang, is a barrel-fermented sour golden ale with persimmons, bittering roots, rose hips and all Colorado base ingredients. The inspiration for this beer came from the idea to connect all four continental US time zones into a single undertaking. The persimmons are from North Carolina (Fullsteam), the Rose Hips from Oregon (Hopworks) and the bittering roots from Illinois (Scratch). The interplay of these ingredients and the sour yeast provides a stone fruit forward flavor and tart finish, balanced by the tannic acidity of the bittering roots and tea-like bitterness from the rose hips.

Fullsteam Brewing

Fullsteam Brewery has developed a community foraging program in Durham, offering market price for persimmons to patrons of the brewery. The end product has resulted in a foraging community and the beer First Frost, a persimmon winter ale, among various other beers with foraged ingredients. Scratch Brewing Company has been featured in national magazines in regards to its expansive foraging program, as the brewery is located on a farm that yields a plethora of wonderful ingredients to use in beers. Notably, this brewery brought five different “single tree” beers to Great American Beer Festival in 2015, crafting different beers based on ingredients from different types of arboreal products. Hopworks Urban Brewery recently became the first B Corporation brewery in the Pacific Northwest as well as the first Salmon-Safe Certified brewing site in the world. It also happens to be the largest contributor to BMBW in the PNW. Our Mutual Friend recently garnered national attention by earning a silver medal in the wood and barrel aged sour beer category at GABF in 2015 and has striven to cultivate local practices by brewing all Colorado ingredient beers as well as other innovative offerings.

Courtesy of Scratch Brewing Co

Golden Fang will be released at Collaboration Fest on March 19th at Sports Authority Field at Mile High along with more than 85 other collaborative projects and will subsequently be available on tap at Our Mutual Friend’s Tap Room starting Thursday, March 24th.

Oskar Blues Brewery Acquires Cigar City Brewing

Courtesy of Oskar Blues Brewery Oskar Blues Brewery Rolls up a Cigar City Blunt   Longmont, CO, & Tampa Bay, FL -- Oskar Blues Brewery announced the acquisition of Tampa's Cigar City Brewing. Putting months of acquirement rumors to rest, the decision is driven by mutual irreverence, respect and desire to stay true to craft beer roots. The combination stems from the want to take risks, sniff out bullsh*t and grow against-the-grain in an era of increasing competition within craft beer. The collaboration will match the years of large-scale growth, expansion expertise and resources of Oskar Blues with the strength of Cigar City's local following to help both breweries strengthen their future position. Similarly to Oskar Blues, Cigar City's award-winning brews are well known and respected within the craft community. "Cigar City is facing next-level challenges and we needed to develop next-level skills and resources to meet them. But, we got into beer out of passion and an unwavering desire to travel our own path. We didn't want to just shove our round peg into some f*cking square hole and hope for the best. Florida craft beer drinkers want something they can proudly stand behind. These guys get that. They wrote the book on keeping it real," says Joey, founder of Cigar City Brewing.  Joey will remain as CEO of Cigar City following the transaction. Since 2009, Cigar City Brewing has achieved a near constant growth pattern reaching nearly 60,000 barrels in 2015, placing the Tampa Bay area and the state of Florida on the craft beer map. The partnership will provide additional investment for Cigar City's infrastructure growth within Florida.  "What Cigar City has done for the community of Florida craft beer is impressive.  It's important for our culture to do business with people we want to hang out with and Joey and the gang fit," Dale Katechis, Soul Founder of Oskar Blues, stated about the new partnership. Oskar Blues Brewery is the funky brewpub that started brewing beer in 1999 in the small town of Lyons, CO and is responsible for starting the craft beer-in-a-can movement in 2002 with Dale's Pale Ale. In 2008, the brewery expanded down the street to Longmont, CO. and added an additional brewery in Brevard, NC in 2012. Oskar Blues brewed 192,000 barrels in 2015 and announced another brewery in Austin, TX scheduled to open in May of 2016.    Terms of the acquisition are not disclosed. About Oskar Blues Brewery  Founded by Dale Katechis in 1997 in Lyons, Colorado, Oskar Blues Brewery launched the craft beer-in-a-can apocalypse with hand-canned, flagship brew Dale's Pale Ale. Today, Oskar Blues is one of the fastest growing breweries in the country and operates breweries in Longmont, Colorado and Brevard, North Carolina, while producing 192,000 barrels in 2015. The original canned craft brewery continues push innovation with the announcement of an Austin, TX brewery in May of 2016 and creations like The Crowler while it distributes to 49 U.S. states, Washington, D.C., as well as parts of Canada, Sweden, and the U.K.   In 2013, Oskar Blues founded the CAN'd Aid Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit public charity that offers grassroots grants to those making a difference in the areas of community, the environment, music, and more. In 2015 alone, CAN'd Aid partnered with 52 organizations and provided nearly $400,000 in charitable contributions, bringing the total amount raised $1.9 million to date. CAN'd Aid's "do-goodery" efforts include:  Towns - building strong communities Tunes - for your eyeholes and earholes Treads + Trails - get outside and get after it Love Yur Mama - save the blue marble To keep up with all things Oskar Blues, visit http://www.oskarblues.com.

Hopworks Releasing Gear Up IPA As A Year Round Six Pack

Courtesy of Hopworks Urban Brewery

HOPWORKS RELEASES GEAR UP IPA AS A YEAR ROUND SIX-PACK

Today Hopworks Urban Brewery (HUB) announced the addition of a new beer to their year-round lineup. Gear Up IPA, a Northwest-Style IPA with an ultra-tropical hop profile, represents HUB’s first 12 oz. six-pack can. Six-packs release in mid-April throughout HUB’s distribution channels in Oregon, Washington, Alaska, Idaho, Utah and western Canada. The beer is currently available as a popular draft offering at both Hopworks brewpubs and at craft beer bars in Oregon and Washington.

From the recipe to the can artwork, every element of Gear Up IPA is meant to celebrate the majestic region HUB calls home. The beer is brewed with organic malted barley from Oregon, naturally filtered water from the Bull Run Watershed, and local hops from Oregon and Washington. The label portrays abstract landscapes of the Pacific Northwest sprinkled with images of the gear required to get outside and explore the natural world. The can was designed by Jolby & Friends, recognized throughout Portland for their NW-inspired patterns and illustrations.

Courtesy of Hopworks Urban Brewery

“After a long day outdoors, everyone loves kicking back and cracking open an IPA. We brewed Gear Up IPA to be at the top of everyone’s Essential Gear List,” says Christian Ettinger, Hopworks Brewmaster and Founder. “Everyone at Hopworks loves this delicious beer and the way it inspires us to wander. We think you’ll like it too.”

Gear Up IPA is light-bodied, golden in color with clean, moderate bitterness. The beer is built to provide a direct line to a complex hop profile of ripe passionfruit, pineapple, and mango that balances dank hop aromas and flavors. Gear Up IPA is 6.2% ABV and 65 IBUs.

About Hopworks Urban Brewery

Hopworks Urban Brewery strives to revolutionize and inspire the brewing industry with practices that drive quality, protect the environment and improve the community we live in. Utilizing organic malts and a combination of locally-sourced, organic and Salmon Safe hops, the company’s 20-barrel brewery produces 13,500 barrels of beer and cider a year for HUB’s two brewpubs and for distribution throughout the Northwest. Hopworks is a family-owned and operated business, the first Certified B Corporation brewery in the Pacific Northwest, a gold-level bike friendly business, and is recognized as one of the Best Green Companies To Work For In Oregon. Learn more online at hopworksbeer.com