Brews on the Bay – Jeramia O’Brien located on the water in SF
September 10th
http://sfbrewersguild.org/botb.html

Biketoberfest Marin Fairfax, CA
Sunday, September 25, 2011
www.biketoberfestmarin.com

Wet Hop Festival
October 15 – Bistro – Hayward, CA
http://the-bistro.com/

Bay Area Craft Beer Festival
Oct 22
http://www.bayareacraftbeerfestival.com/

Beer with food pairing dinners are a great way to learn a lot about beer in an evening. usually these events are structured in a way that will leave you happy and full. if you’ve never been to one of these events here’s some things you can expect.

the beers won’t be a full pint. and this is a good thing. sometimes you won’t like the beer that is in front of you. which means that you’ll be dumping it in the bucket. and while it seems unfair to the beer imagine dumping a whole glass.

the food won’t be big either. remember these are portions designed for pairing. usually each beer has something that it goes with. meaning in an evening you’ll have 5-9 “courses” which turns out to be a lot of food.

this means that smaller is better. you’ll get to try more beer and eat a large diversity of food. but more importantly you don’t want to get “full” unless you like this feeling.

somebody will want to talk. this is the part of the learning part. usually your guide will tell you about the style of beer that is in front of you, what the brewer had in mind while making it and possibly a funny story to wrap it up. usually brewers and owners are quick with their words allowing you to get back to your own tables conversation.

speaking of your table, be sure to introduce yourself to everyone. you never know who will be next to you. we’ve met beer writers, judges, geeks, travelers and home brewers all of whom have a ton of knowledge that is relevant to the evening.

sometimes these things seem like they cost a lot of money. but added up it’s not that much more compared to a regular night out. remember this is part classroom, part show and a chance to try things that you might otherwise ignore or miss.

do and don’ts
if you’d like more beer be sure to finish what you already have.

before you dump a beer ask you table if they would like to finish it. somebody will appreciate that you asked.

try all the beers. don’t skip one just because you don’t like the color. who knows, that barley wine may be the best thing you’ve ever tried.

it’s a marathon not a sprint. you are going to sample food and beer for over 3 hours. so go slow. enjoy the whole night.

it’s ok to ask questions! ask your table, your hosts and the brewers.

upcoming events:

Beer School at 21st Amendment August 2011

Explore Your Craft featuring beer from Widmer Brothers:

San Francisco – August 13th
Orlando – October 18th
Seattle November 19th

it’s all a blur. at least it is now. 10 days of SF Beer Week came and went. keep in mind that SFBW is surrounded by Strong Beer Month.

there are a few things that we learned in the 3rd year of this event: it’s impossible to get to everything, it’s easy to get tired, and everyone wants to be part of it. the new thing this year were lines. long ones. every single place and event that we attended was packed. it didn’t matter that it was Monday or Tuesday the world was out wanting to try beer. meaning the SF Brewers Guild did an excellent job of getting the word out.

we met lots of people who came in specifically for the week. like the guy from the East Coast (sorry, your card got lost) who planned his vacation around the week. or the couple that drove in just to try Pliney the Younger. and our friends that braved the line for Barley Wine.

lots of these events are over attended because of the echo chamber effect. that is because everyone is talking about the events everyone shows up. they’ve out grown their venue to the point of needing a new place because of the crush. but a venue change will also make the event change radically. imagine the Barley Wine festival with 10X the attendance. even in a bigger place it would still be a sea of people. changing the organic feeling of an event might push away the passionate beer geeks. there are lots of examples of festivals that we don’t go to because of they corporate vibe and the dick-ish nature of the attendee.

the other surprise this year was how some events were too popular. the Nano tasting at Social Kitchen was the best example. the line was so long that the organizers started turing people away. the buzz on Twitter about that was not kind. we started to make our way there but changed our destination baed on this buzz. hopefully organizers will remember this kind of problem for next year.

our strategy for surviving the week was simple. get there early or get there really late. most of the beer that we wanted to try was still pouring late into the night. often we got the next to last pint of whatever or we got the last last glass that was half full. this year we skipped the big beer dinners which are mini marathons in the bigger marathon. we like these dinners but we’d like to see them all year round and not just big events during beer week.

Valantines day massacre ‘Tion Fest, Strong Beer School, rare flights, one keg of Younger, meet another brewer, all of the Sierra Nevada 30′th beers, barrel aged something something, sour OMG this is sour, Barley Wine lead up to the Celebrator Party on Sunday where exhaustion had set in. it wasn’t that we didn’t want another beer but what specific beer we wanted. having tried so many things during the week it was kind of nice to have a half a pint of the freshest Trumer Pils on the planet. even if it was in the wrong glass it was just the thing for the end of the week. we poured beer for a while. and then it was over.

it was clear just how much work the organizers, brewers, and everyone else put into the week. it’s not something that “just happens” although it seems like it is while being part of it. see you next year!

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news about the Brewing Network’s Winterfest 2011 comes just two weeks before the event. last year it was held at the Linden Street Brewery. the food was good, the beer was good and the after party at a previously unknown dive bar was too much fun.

The East Bay-based craft beer radio company, The Brewing Network, is back for its 2nd Annual Winter Brews Festival to jump-start the local craft beer appreciation season.

With more than 30 world class breweries on tap, visitors will enjoy unlimited tastings from breweries such as the 21st Amendment, Gordon Biersch, Lagunitas, Magnolia, and Triple Rock. This Winter Brews Festival promises to expose beer lovers, new and experienced, to a variety of tasty beers, as well as raise awareness and funding for two local non-pro?ts; the Coral Reef Alliance and BAD RAP (Bay Area Doglovers Responsible About Pit bulls).

$40 gets you into for tasting beer from these local breweries (purchase a ticket early and spend 5 bucks less to get in):
21st Amendment Brewery
Firestone Walker Brewing
Speakeasy Ales and Lagers
Moonlight Brewing
Magnolia Gastropub and Brewery
Triple Rock Brewery
Drakes Brewing
Uncommon Brewers
Lagunitas Brewing
Gordon Biersch Brewing
Firehouse Grill and Brewery
Stone Brewing
Iron Springs Pub and Brewery
Black Diamond Brewing
Lost Coast Brewery
Bison Brewing
Sudwerk Brewery
Shmaltz Brewing

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you know that sometimes the only way to get that cool glass or plate is to appropriate it by appropriation. and while the five finger discount seems like a good idea 5 pints into the night there are better ways to acquire loot. like at the Rogue Ales Public House Presidents day(s) garage sale. okay, so we’re pretty sure they really have a garage but they do have a sale.

it runs from Friday the 12th until the 15th. meaning you’ve got time to stop by there before the big SF Beer Week weekend that will have you busy beyond.

Get here!

link

here’s some things that will help you get the most from SF Beer Week. we did it last year and we learned lots.

get the iPhone app if you have that thing. it has a list of all the events. plus it lets you share photos. or lacking that thing the SF Beer Week website has a very complete list of all the events.

here is a nifty interactive map to help you get there.

you cannot go to every single event. don’t even try. by the time this happens there will be over 250. decide what you think is the most fun you can have and do that. you will look at the list with the idea of all of this sounds fun. but the reality is that time will be your limiting factor.

make a plan. decide in advance what you want to attend. and write it down or post it somewhere. that way you can share it with your friends. for example:

5 Opening Gala at the Yerba Buena. 4PM-8PM
6 Double IPA Festival in Hayward. Noon-ish.
7 Beerunch before the @ESBale Stupid Bowl & Home Brew Festival.
8 Triple Rock Sour Beer Festival
9 Triple Rock Barrel Aged Festival followed by the Tionfest at Toronado
10 City Beer Store (noon), Zeitgeist, Lagunitas
11 Paxton dinner. details here. or it's Oyster Fest at Magnolia and Sierra Nevada at the T.
12 Bill Brand Tribute at Drakes 4PM
13 Barleywine at Toronado (Satur-DAY)
14 Brewers Tea at 21st Amendment followed by the Celebrator 22nd Party

if you want to go to a specific dinner or event don’t wait to sign up. do it the second you think it’s a good idea. everything sells out.

don’t do anything on an empty stomach. you really need to eat before you get these events. the idea is that a good foundation will help you later.

plan on public transportation. bart, bus, cab, train, trolly, or designate a driver. please DO NOT DRIVE yourself.

the Toronado is always crowded for these events. if you want a seat get there earlier then the actual event. but don’t just sit there. also remember that “less popular places” are also doing very cool things. two examples: Pi Bar, the new kid on the block, has events almost every night. and City Beer Store has special tastings all week.

it’s not just in San Francisco. events are happening all around the Bay Area. and there’s events happening in the Lower Area as well.

take notes. take pictures. get twitter. get it on your phone. and when you tweet something put @sfbeerweek as part of the message. this will let everyone know what a good time you are having.

take a night off. or make it a short one. you don’t have to stay to the end. it’s okay to go home early.

it’s not all drinking. there’s lots of learning going on as well. check out the Expert Panel series. a beer judging session. homebrewing demostrations. brewery tours. beer appreciation. there’s lots to learn.

the Meet the Brewer sessions are another way of saying “something special is going to be poured.”

drink water. you don’t have to go overboard on this. but have a glass once in a while. you will feel better later if you do.

the Double IPA Fest gets bigger every year. take BART. it’s over by 6. and Pliney the Younger runs out first.

my take on the Barley Wine Festival is to go late. sure, you won’t get to try as many because they sell out. and you certainly will miss the winning beers. but it doesn’t matter as you won’t have to fight. this festival starts Saturday morning. if you aren’t in line by 9 you won’t get in. it gets super crowded, it’s very loud and it gets hot inside. the other thing to do is go with a team. that way you will get to try more because you are committing to tastes not larger pours.

the Celebrator Party is always fun. and this year its back at Trumer! save $10 by getting your ticket(s) early.

just because we’ve listed these specific events doesn’t mean that the ones we missed aren’t awesome. there’s just too much going on. believe us, all of it looks fun and should have our attention.

remember, it’s a marathon not a sprint. it’s a party that lasts for 9 days. 1 more day than the Beatles 8 Day Week. you start to feel the effects of it by the third day. drink less. drink smaller. share what you are tasting.

we did a big wrap up of it on the podcast. here’s the link for it.

Stu Stuart has a bunch of trips planned that will take you to all over the country of Belgium. some of the trips are centered around a festival like Zythos or Essen Christmas Beer Festival.

traveling to a foreign country can be a daunting experience. there is so much different and yet the same. and while it’s not at all like trekking to the Congo a guide is a handy thing to have just the same. Stu has run many trips of all sizes from small personal trips to larger bus based tours.

Stu also has classes about Belgian beer. which is a great way to try beer that you’ve never tried without the hassle of traveling.

Belgian Beer Me! Beer Tours
• The Great Zythos Beer Festival Tour of Belgium March 3-8, 2010. Six days, five nights.
• The Ardennes Mountain Spring Beer Tour of Belgium May 26-June 3, 2010. Nine Days, eight nights.
• New! The Best Damn Farmhouse Ale Tour of Belgium & France Oct. 11-16, 2010. Six days, five nights.
The Lonely Monks Trappist Beer Tour of Belgium & the Netherlands Oct. 16-25, 2010.

check out Belgianbeerme.com for a complete list of tours and additional information.

Join us at 5PM on Monday February 1 for the release of Beer School the beer. it’s pouring at 21st Amendment on 563 2nd St (between Brannon and Bryant) in San Francisco.

Beer School (the beer) is a dry hopped Blonde that weighs in at 9.1% ABV. the idea was to take two wrongs and make a right. the details of how this beer came to be will be posted soon.

this is one of the beers featured for Strong Beer Month which is a joint effort between Magnolia and 21st Amendment. now in it’s 7th year with it’s original idea was to do something for the make what is normally the slowest month of the year into something that wasn’t.

anyway. see you at 5PM!

because there isn’t anything happening before SF beer week you might be interested in this Sunday afternoon event being held at Ace’s located in the Tenderknob. join the regulars in choosing the best homemade Chili in their 4th annual event. and if the chili doesn’t fill you up there will be free BBQ to go with that.

Ace’s
998 Sutter St @ Hyde

Sunday 31
12-4 PM

Free BBQ

$3 bud and bud light 16oz cans
5 other beers on draft

nothing can prepare you for a week long event in your own city that is the likes of San Francisco Beer Week. it’s starts with a party in the shape of a beer festival and ends exactly the same way 9 days later. that’s right, it’s so big that the week has to have one more day then that Beatles song. every night and sometimes day there’s are multiple events that you will surely miss because you chose to attend what seemed like the more awesome. beer dinners, rare tastings, a night of sour beers, the Barley Wine Festival, the Double IPA festival. on top of that it’s the second week of Magnolia and 21st Amendments Strong Beer Month. and it’s my birthday.

kids, there are more than 50 events. there is no possible way to make it everywhere. I know, I tried.

okay, three things will prepare you. here’s a plan. taking the entire week off of work is essential. making a list of what you want to attend like the ‘tion fest, lagunitus, more Vinney, a tea party and so on. make the list so you won’t miss something. finally park yourself in the City so you do not have to drive.

the web site will help you: www.sfbeerweek.com

twitter will help you: twitter.com/sfbeerweek

your iPhone will help you. download the app.
get here!