DC Beer Week is only a week away, folks.
The storm is brewing, the events are populating, and the beers are getting kegged and canned as you’re reading this. You can find the official event calendar here and the full unofficial and official events on our own calendar. It’s filling up quick. 9 out of 10 doctors employed by DC Beer Dot Com do not recommend going to all of them. (We do not actually employ medical doctors.)
There are also non-beer week related events, many of which are also worth your time. I don’t know how you choose between all the events that will occur that week, honestly. I would suggest going to the ones the shortest distance from your domicile. That might be helpful.
If you haven’t heard, the DC institution NRG, not content with just spreading far and wide throughout our area, is spreading to New York City.
If you haven’t gotten to District ChopHouse to try the newest iteration of our 10 beers for 10 years, a dunkel, what are you waiting for? Beer doesn’t last forever.
DC Brau is losing one of its unsung members, Christopher Graham, to a new challenge.
Good news! Devils Backbone is sending something new to the Capital One Center for Wizards games. Bad News? See for yourself.
Union Craft Brewing’s own Kevin Blodger appears in this video of luminaries in the craft beer scene, of which, despite his modesty, he is one.
Scientists from the University of Maryland are working with Diamondback Brewing to use their spent grain to experiment in preventing algae blooms. You gotta brew the beer and drink it faster, though, to help with science. Do it for the kids.
Baltimore’s Pub Dog endured a major gas explosion that will keep them out of business for some time. The owners have set up a GoFundMe for their staff.
Finally, to end our local news, Bronson Beer Hall opens in Ballston with $10 liters of Hardywood pilsner and Port City Optimal Wit.
In the biggest news outside of our region, Founders Brewing has sold most of the remaining unowned shares of the company to Mahou San Miguel. I wonder where that leaves their ongoing legal battle with a former employee over accusations of discrimination? Toni of Beer Kulture wrote, once again, on the issues the industry writ large has with diversity and treatment of non-white employees. Fans of the brewery shouted a loud meh when given the news.
A St. Louis area brewery received a notice of trademark infringement from a foreign brewery and sent probably the most detailed response I have yet to see from a brewery.
AB-Inbev declined to buy out the remainder of Craft Brew Alliance. I’m not sure what to glean from this aside from the timing being just poor.
Meanwhile, Bryan Roth writes about two closures of well-known breweries in upstate New York. No, it isn’t a bubble, it’s just business. But check back next week to see if its a bubble again, I’m sure it will be by then.
And here’s some of the beers offered in upstate:
There are lots of other beers up there, of course. But those don’t have pounds of apple fritters in the boil, do they? I didn’t think so.
England’s Moor Beer set an example for all breweries and dumped a perfectly cromulent beer down the drain because it didn’t meet their exacting standards. It was what many may consider an “experimental ale”. Here’s to more of those that aren’t very good going down drains.
A Rwandan beer company apologized for a series of sexist jokes that appeared on their bottles.
Finally, for my fellow introverts, a defense of burying your face in your phone while you’re at a bar. Especially if you’re not there with someone, this is perfectly fine behavior. I go to a bar to get a drink and sit in a dark corner sometimes. Leave us alone in the Void.
We have many preview articles coming for DC Beer Week next week, but you may hear from me again before the week begins. Have fun out there. But not too much. And don’t ask me for a cure for hangovers, if I had that I’d be a lot richer.
