Monthly Archives: June 2008

Archaelogists find evidence of a medieval brewer

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I think archaelogy is cool. Not cool enough for me to kneel in the dirt and hot sun searching for artifacts with just a toothbrush, but I’m definitely fascinated by “lost” bits of civilization.

Medieval maltings found at famous brewer

But the unearthing of an expansive domed area and flue beyond the [Bury St Edmunds] Abbey’s boundary shows there was at least one other large-scale brewer in the town at the time – and that the town had a precursor to Greene King.

The structure is thought to be a medieval malting, which was used to process and then heat soaked barley.

Appropriately enough, the discovery was made beneath the North Yard of the town’s present day brewing giant Greene King, which invited in the archaeologists before clearing up the yard for building work nearby.

Head Brewer John Bexon stands alongside the discovery of medieval maltings ruins at the Greene King Brewery in Bury

Anheuser-Busch says no, but plays coy

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Yesterday, Anheuser-Busch’s Board of Directors rejected InBev’s unsolicited takeover offer. Saying that $65 per share was “financially inadequate”, the Board left open the possibility that a higher offer might sweep them off their feet.

Meanwhile, InBev has stated that it will ask A-B shareholders to dump the current Board. However, some analysts  think that the Belgian/Brazilian titan will sweeten its offer, perhaps as high as $75 per share.

InBev May Need $7 Billion More to Win Over Anheuser

Anheuser-Busch’s rejection of the offer yesterday was the board’s first response since InBev made its unsolicited proposal June 11. InBev said it preferred a friendly combination of its Bass, Beck’s and Stella Artois with Budweiser, while still pursuing an ouster of the board.

A purchase at the current price would be the biggest of a consumer company since Procter & Gamble Co. bought Gillette Co. for $57 billion in 2005.

While Busch told distributors in April that the company wouldn’t be sold while he was in charge, the family doesn’t own enough shares to sway a shareholder vote on the board. Directors and executives hold 4.5 percent of the company’s shares, according to a regulatory filing earlier this year.  

This corporate soap opera continues, with analysts figuring that any more than $67 per share will make the deal unprofitable for InBev. Additionally, A-B is not above dumping some divisions and implementing cost-cutting measures to boost its stock price.

Meanwhile, the fate of thousands of employees–who, in their own way, are beer lovers–hangs in the balance.

Tune in tomorrow for another exciting episode of Beers of Our Lives.

Press release: Redhook Long Hammer IPA Gets a New Look

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Nation’s Most Popular IPA Continues to Lure Fans to the Hop Side

WOODINVILLE, Wash. – June 26, 2008 – Redhook Ale Brewery today announced new packaging for its Long Hammer IPA, the nation’s number-one selling India Pale Ale. With a smooth, clean finish, Long Hammer IPA embraces the traditional strong hop profile, while remaining approachable and easy to drink.

“With our rich history in the Pacific Northwest and a long-standing commitment to consistently high quality craft brews, our fans have come to expect a lot from Redhook,” said Doug MacNair, brew master for Redhook Ale Brewery. “We’ve worked hard to perfect the art of crafting an ideal IPA every beer drinker can appreciate. We’ve mastered the technique of dry-hopping Long Hammer with Cascade hops at the end of our brewing process to impart a wonderful aroma without creating an overpowering taste.”

Long Hammer’s approachability is reflected in the new packaging, scheduled to hit store shelves in late July and early August. The new look is bright, bold and clean and will continue to focus on the iconic hammer emblem. Redhook Long Hammer IPA is available in 22 oz. bottles in select states, as well as in 12 oz. bottles and on draft nationwide.

In addition to Long Hammer IPA, packaging for the other Redhook craft beer varieties will be redesigned as well, appearing on shelves late summer.

About Redhook Ale Brewery, Inc.
A leading independent brewer, Redhook Ale Brewery has been at the forefront of the domestic craft brewing segment since the company’s formation in 1981. Redhook brews eight styles of craft beer, including: Long Hammer IPA (the number one IPA in the country), Redhook ESB, Redhook Blonde Ale, Blackhook Porter, and seasonal offerings Copperhook Spring Ale, Sunrye Summer Ale, Late Harvest Autumn Ale and Winterhook Winter Ale. All beer is brewed exclusively in its company-owned breweries – one in the Seattle suburb of Woodinville, Wash., and the other in Portsmouth, N.H. Redhook’s specialty beers are available in both draft and bottles and are distributed nationally through a network of wholesale distributors. For more information, visit www.redhook.com.

Candy store: Bier-Spezialitäten-Laden

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Norwegian Knut Albert is traveling in Germany and writes on his eponymous blog about a specialty shop in Berlin.

Bier-Spezialitäten-Laden

Sind sie eine Etikettensammler or ein Biergenisser, asks the man behind the counter. Are you a label collector or do you enjoy a good beer? Ein Biergenisser, I reply. When I start picking a few bottles, the other customers enthusiastically suggest others, and there is a brief discussion on whether a certain porter is sweet or not.

(We want to profile your “candy store”. Send us your enthusiastic comments and we’ll feature it here. Photos a plus.)

Time magazine on underage drinking

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Time magazine recently ran a piece on underage drinking and some of the effects of our draconian anti-alcohol laws.

Time: Should You Drink with Your Kids?

A few years ago, a team of North Carolina researchers, led by public-health professor Kristie Long Foley, examined whether adults’ approval or disapproval mattered when adolescents were deciding whether and how much to drink. Foley’s team analyzed surveys of more than 6,000 people ages 16 to 20 in 242 U.S. communities. One predictable finding: kids whose parents gave them alcohol for parties were more likely to binge-drink. That discovery underscored years of research showing that the earlier people start to drink, the more likely they are to become alcoholics.

But another result was surprising: if kids actually drank with their parents, they were about half as likely to say they had drunk alcohol in the past month and about one-third as likely to say they had had five or more drinks in a row in the previous two weeks. As Foley and her colleagues wrote in a 2004 Journal of Adolescent Health paper, “Drinking with parents appears to have a protective effect on general drinking trends.”

Will craft kill the King (of Beers)?

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That’s what Joseph Tirella wonders in a recent article for MSN Money.

Although only a small percentage of the overall beer market in the U.S., craft beers have grown in sales dollars by almost 60% since 2004. Beer from the “big” brewers is essentially flat, if not contracting.

Will microbrews kill the King of Beers?

The shift in consumer tastes — along with a commodities boom that has put pressure on profits throughout the beer industry — has put the jumbo players on the defensive. The industry’s No. 2 and 3 players, SABMiller and Molson Coors, respectively, are merging their operations in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Their new company – MillerCoors – is expected to go into effect in July and will have a combined market share of nearly 30%.

And the nation’s self-titled King of Beers, Anheuser-Busch, has been dogged by the possible takeover by Belgian global powerhouse InBev.

Franconia banking on beer

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Beer is recession-proof, or so the conventional wisdom goes. People will cut down on a lot of things, but not their beer. Heck, without beer what would you have to cry into?

Dennis Wehrmann of Franconia Brewing Company is certainly banking on this. He was profiled in a recent issue of The Dallas Morning News.

Franconia owner banks on beer budgets

Beer consumption can be resistant to the ups and downs in an economy, a crucial advantage for his Franconia Brewing Co., which opened in February.

“There are certain things in life people don’t want to cut back,” he said. “You can’t take all the fun out of life. When you have to spend vacations at home, you at least want to drink some good beer.”

As Mr. Wehrmann began filling his kegs, prices for ingredients soared. Bulk grain shot to 45 cents a pound from 19 cents in October. A pound of hops jumped from around $12 to $58 in the same period.

He had to quickly alter his business plan to cut costs, including scuttling a tasting room. Still, he said, he’s pleased with the response to his brews, an orange-golden lager and a citrusy ale, now on tap at about a dozen North Texas restaurants and bars.

The InBev and Anheuser-Busch saga

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The soap opera continues.

International Brewers Day – July 18

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Have you hugged a brewmaster today?

For thousands of years, these men and women have toiled to create beverage that we love. Beer may very well be the impetus for civilization. But do they have a holiday? Noooo…

Until now, that is.

The brainchild of Jay Brooks, International Brewers Day is a day to “honor the great men and women who make the beer we love”.

Brewers have given so many of us the pleasure of their artistry and enriched our lives with their beer since civilization began. So I think it’s time we recognized their efforts by celebrating their lives, their commitment and their craft. We’re all beer people, but without the brewers what would we be drinking?

July 18 was chosen because that is the feast day of St. Arnold, the best known patron saint of brewers.

All that remains now is to get the word out. If you have a blog or website, announce the holiday. Consider adding a graphic to your site for the lead-up to the date. There are a couple dozen graphics already made for you at the official International Brewers Day website. Post about it on discussion forums and mailing lists. Hey, if Towel Day can become a de facto holiday, so can this.

How to celebrate? Well, drink beer for one. Profile your favorite brewmaster. Hold an event. Hug your favorite brewer. Petition Hallmark to create greeting cards for the occasion. Whatever you do, tell the world about it.

International Brewers Day – July 18, 2008