Beer Events Archives - Craft Beer Blog from The Beer of the Month Club

Beyond the Bottle: Silver Streak x2

December 15, 2019 by Ken Weaver

This will be the second of the Rare Beer Club’s anniversary beers to receive its name from a classic comedy, and it seemed like an ideal opportunity to pop an early bottle of Silver Streak for tasting notes and check out the movie itself. Silver Streak (1976) is partly buddy comedy between Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor, and partly soft-thriller where everyone’s trying to kill Gene Wilder’s character—who proves that there is no limit to the number of times you can fall off a train. There are definitely parts of the movie that haven’t aged well, though it’s the first of four movies Pryor and Wilder did together, and is probably best in tandem with Stir Crazy (1980). Wilder’s character is next-level vanilla; Pryor brings most of the energy.

Not many beer parallels (there’s buckets of Champagne), although I couldn’t help but notice the love interest of Gene Wilder’s character, played by Jill Clayburgh, introduces herself by noting her character’s name is short for Hildegard. Saint Hildegard of Bingen is seriously one of the coolest people in history—and is generally credited for first recording the preservative qualities of hops!—along with establishing herself as an accomplished herbalist, a composer, scientist, writer, visionary, inventor of alphabets, church reformer, and lots of other things.

Best beer parallel I’ve got. The train scene at the end might be worth the price of admission. Got a classic comedy to recommend as a namesake for a future Rare Beer Club anniversary beer? Hit us up with your favorites on Twitter via @RareBeerClub.

Beyond the Bottle: The Last Day of Christmas

October 15, 2019 by Ken Weaver

The Rare Beer Club has long been a supporter of The Bruery’s 12 Days of Christmas series, offering each release to RBC members dating as far back as 2009 with Two Turtle Doves, a Belgian-style dark ale brewed with cocoa nibs and toasted pecans. I’ve been working as the club’s newsletter writer for the latter half of the run—from 7 Swans-A-Swimming in 2014 to the present—and each release has combined the concept of Belgian brewers doing stronger, occasionally spiced dark beers for the holiday season with the annually rotating prompt from that 12 Days of Christmas song. 2 Turtle Doves riffed on ‘turtle’ candy. 3 French Hens used French oak barrels. 5 Golden Rings went a bit out-there—11.5% golden ale, with spices and pineapple. 8 Maids-a-Milking was an imperial milk stout… but fermented with Belgian yeast.

This year’s release of 12 Drummers Drumming marks the final release of the series, after 11 years of annual Belgian-style holiday beers, starting with Partridge in a Pear Tree. It’s worth taking just a moment to consider the series in context: it’s one of the first major (let’s call it) higher-concept series of annual one-off releases riffing on a core theme I can recall in craft beer, following in the SoCal footsteps of stuff like Stone’s Vertical Epic Series (02.02.02 to 12.12.12). Both are impressively ambitious projects, each taking over a decade to complete, and it’s especially neat that The Bruery’s started theirs in 2008—the same year they opened.

So, what other large-scale brewery release series am I totally overlooking? (The Lost Abbey’s Ultimate Boxed Set from 2012 comes to mind, though those 12 one-off beers were released monthly…) Also: have you been cellaring any of the 12 Days of Christmas series to pop with this year’s final release? Let us know on Twitter via @RareBeerClub.

Rare Beer Club Naming Contest with Pints for Prostates and Atom Brewing Company

May 8, 2019 by Kris Calef

It’s been awhile since we crowd sourced a beer name for one of our exclusives so we thought this one was the perfect opportunity. As we’ve done in the past, if your name is selected, you’ll win a 6 month, 2-bottle membership to The Rare Beer Club®. I mean, really, how can you resist? This is a no-brainer. So head down to the beer fridge, pick out something that will inspire your creativity and bust out your legal pad and pencil baby!

Each year, for over 10 years now, we’ve teamed up with Rick Lyke over at Pints for Prostates and a US craft brewery to create a super cool Rare Beer Club exclusive beer to help promote the importance of prostate cancer screening in the beer community. We’re super pumped to be working with Jeff and Chris at Atom Brewing Company. They’re small and they’re good. A true farmhouse operation, from their custom oak fermenters to the cedar lined ceiling that allows wild microflora to flourish, Atom is creating exceptional small-batch, hand-crafted beers. I love that they’re packaging their beers still (uncarbonated). Not a lot of breweries doing that these days.

So when Jeff pitched an open-fermented, Imperial Farmhouse Stout incorporating sunflower seeds and cacao, aged in his custom oak fermenters using a house blend of wild yeast, I was like… “Hang on a sec Jeff. I need to consult my team on this one. Actually, I really don’t. This one’s going to go over just peachy man.”

Wait. Don’t power down just yet. Are you still there? There’s some stuff you gotta know first.

Entering the Beer Naming Contest

Although the new beer will only be available to members of The Rare Beer Club, both members and non-members are invited to enter the contest and submit up to three names for the new beer. The contest officially begins on Wednesday, May 8^th, 2019. Entrants will have until 2 pm PDT on Wednesday, May 22^nd, to submit up to three names. That gives you a week to think about each name! You can do this!

Finalists will be chosen by The Rare Beer Club and Atom Brewing Company on May 23^rd at which time contestants, club members, and the general public can vote for their favorite name. The winning entry will be announced on Friday, May 31^stand the contest winner will receive a 6-month, 2-bottle membership to The Rare Beer Club.

To receive this special beer, and many more, join the Rare Beer Club online or call 800-625-8238. Be sure to start your membership by September 2019, or earlier, to receive this exclusive beer from Atom Brewing Company.

Have fun!

Prost!
Kris

Last-Minute Craft Beer Gift Ideas

December 12, 2018 by Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club

So you’ve got a beer lover on your holiday list that you’ve procrastinated buying the perfect present for. Now that it’s down to the wire, you can either risk shopping online and pay for expedited shipping or risk battling crazy shoppers, parking lots, and standing in mall lines.

We’ve got some last-minute holiday gift ideas as you can never go wrong the perfect gift of craft beer. The best part about these ideas is that they can easily be purchased online or over the phone in less than five minutes without ever needing to leave the house — no gift wrapping required!

Chances are, your beer fan might fall into one of the selections below.

The US craft beer lover or the Newbie to craft beer;

The U.S. Microbrewed Beer Club The Original Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club has focused on consistently delivering two things to our members: Quality and Variety.

For that Hop Head lover in your life;

The Hops Head Beer Club is the newest subscription box in the lineup. The club focuses on a variety of hoppy beer styles, including IPAs, Double IPAs, IPLs, and other well-hopped styles.

Wants a variety of beers in their box;

The U.S. and International Variety Beer Club for the beer lover that wants the most variety in their subscription box from both U.S. Craft Beers and International selections. Discovery of the world of beer.

The Explorer of beers crafted abroad;

The International Beer Club for those most interested primarily in exploring beers from time-honored international breweries.

The beer geek that searches for those limited Released beers that only a few can try;

The Rare Beer Club for those that are seeking the exclusives, limited releases, rare celebratory craft beers, some barrel aged and beers you can cellar. This is the ultimate club for them. These come in 750ml bottles, many of which are corked and caged.

For the ones that want to try a bit of everything;

Design Your Own Club™ offers you the flexibility to combine our expertly selected Beer, Wine, Cigar, Cheese, Chocolate, and Flower subscription clubs into one customizable membership.

The craft beer accessory lover;

Any order with three or more shipments includes a FREE bartender’s bottle opener. Check out what it looks like in the image at the top of this page.

The craft beer lover that wants to be in the know;

Celebrator Beer News magazine America’s premier craft beer news magazine subscription focusing on craft brewing.

For the DIY Lover;

Create your very own DIY Craft Beer Advent Calendar and give the gift of beer every day leading up till Christmas.

The brewery imbiber;

For those who like to travel to different U.S. breweries and bring something back with them, growlers are a great option and come in a variety of different styles and sizes.

The true craft beer connoisseur;

Just like wine, beer should be poured into the appropriate glassware. Give the gift of beer glasses to accompany any craft beer gift.

5 Beer Holiday Traditions
That You Should Embrace

November 27, 2018 by Kris Calef

Tradition #1: Pick a kick-ass holiday seasonal beer and hoist that baby every year when you’re hanging your lights

Let’s face it, hanging lights sucks. It’s a cold, lonely, and thankless job, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Each year, I put down 3-4 bottles of Anchor’s Christmas Ale, which more than likely makes a 2-hour job into a 3-hour job, but ever since I started this tradition, I look forward to hanging those babies. This year, a good buddy donated some aged samples for the cause, and I have some going back as far as 2005, so it may be a 5-hour job when it’s all said and done.

Our legal team would like us to inform you that MonthlyClubs.com® and The Rare Beer Club® in no way endorse drinking while hanging Christmas lights, i.e. don’t be climbing any ladders with a few winter warmers in your gullet!

Tradition #2: Share a massive ABV, barrel-aged beer with someone who claims to not like beer

I love doing this, and as a member of The Bruery’s Reserve Society for a couple of years, far too often I’d bust out some variation for Black Tuesday, their 19-20%+ ABV bourbon-barrel aged Russian Imperial Stout, on some unsuspecting non-believer. Most are shocked and had no idea that beer could be so good. It’s fun. Give it a try.

Tradition #3: Buy & drink five new holiday seasonal beers you’ve never tried

This one may be a no-brainer and add no value to the reader what so ever, but I felt inclined to point out the obvious. We’ve all got our favorite go-to’s. Set sail from that safe harbor and challenge your palate a bit on a couple of styles. Maybe plan to drink one each Friday leading up to the 25^th…Or whenever you’re thirsty. You can even make it fun by creating a Craft Beer Advent Calendar stuffed with holiday and winter beer styles you’ve never tried.

Tradition #4: Find one of your favorite holiday beers on draft at a cool bar and kick it with your favorite peeps

I used to live on Balboa Island in my 20s and we’d hit this sweet beach bar called The Saloon on the Peninsula every year in late November to lap up many, many pints of Anchor’s Christmas Ale over few games of darts and pool. It doesn’t get much better. Damn, Anchor’s getting some good press outta me today.

Tradition #5: Buy a magnum of something cool and bring it to a party

So this one has the benefit of not only making you look like some kind of super stud when you show up with a magnum in hand when everyone else is sporting a bottle of wine, but also ensures that you’ll be drinking good beer for at least the first 2-3 beers…Stay close to the prize.

Do all five traditions, Grasshopper, and it is time for you to leave… the year behind.

Prost!
Kris

Beyond the Bottle: Enjoy It While It Lasts

November 16, 2018 by Ken Weaver

All About Beer Magazine had been one of the leading beer publications in the country for 39-ish years. While I wouldn’t be surprised if the brand re-emerged in a different form, you can read more about what’s been going down over at Jeff Alworth’s Beervana blog—“After 39 Years, All About Beer Magazine is Dead”—or via the Forbes article “RIP All About Beer.”

It’s been a weird couple years.

I was one of the last folks to depart the All About Beer editorial team, though I kept doing my Trending column over there through the magazine’s final printed issues. That editorial team, led by John Holl and then Daniel Hartis up until the end, was the most supportive group of beer writers and editors I could’ve asked for. Managing editor Jon Page and our designer Jeff Quinn helped steer the mag to what I’m inclined to believe were some of its brightest years. And Hartis and I had some awesome theme issues planned that never saw the light of day.

For those of you who read the mag—thank you for supporting independent beer journalism. If you’re looking for something else to read, Holl’s an editor at Craft Beer & Brewing Magazine these days. I’ve got my first piece for the revamped BeerAdvocate Magazine in their latest issue. Support those publications that serve you well. They’re not going to be around forever.

Beyond the Bottle: Great American Beer Fest Notes

October 10, 2018 by Ken Weaver

Knocking out this latest column right after getting back from Denver. It was my fourth year judging out at the Great American Beer Festival, and it’s one of the parts of my involvement in the industry that’s particularly rewarding each year. Three days, and up to six flights a day, of beers across varying styles and executions, judged blind with some of the more thoughtful and experienced palates in the beer world. This year we were 298 judges across 12 countries, sensorily combing through approximately 8,650 beers entered by 2,400 American breweries.

Also: 391 entries in the new hazy/juicy IPA category. Which gives you a sense of tone.

Some clips from the highlights reel: The competition is in the process of transitioning fully to an eJudging platform, so I got to knock out some of my first-round notes with a tablet—which I think is guaranteed to streamline the process and clarity of notes going forward, and they’re rolling it out carefully. During the sessions of the beer festival itself: it was interesting to see lines snaking away from hazy-focused spots like Weldwerks and Great Notion, where that fanfare hadn’t quite crested a few years ago when we’d first seen them. Weldwerks’ end-corner booth had a dedicated side for brewers and judges; even that tended to have a line. I chatted with a few folks about what it means to have a competition with an increasingly less familiar set of names winning awards as the industry expands, and if that’s cause for concern. As expected: Certainly saw a number of Brut IPAs at the fest. On the Rare Beer Club front: shout out to The Bruery for taking a bronze for Mischief—their 10^th GABF medal to date.