Everyone can celebrate Michigan Craft Beer Month
Hey my Michigan friends, July is Michigan Craft Beer Month
Category: Blog
Short’s Brewing Company Stands Tall on Minimum Wage
Short’s Brewing Company implements 2018 minimum wage now.
Short’s Brewing company
in Bellaire Michigan has announced that they will be skipping the gradual increase in the minimum wage that was passed signed into law in Michigan, and instead raise their wages to match the 2018 goals immediately. Short’s Brewing Company is Michigan’s leader in creative and inspired beer choices, and they appear to also want to be a leader in treating their staff fairly and with respect. Matt Drake, COO and HR Director at Short’s stated, “Along with making high quality, creatively fearless beer, our goal is to take care of our staff.” Continue reading
Microbrew Beer & Music Festival in Traverse City featuring Brandi Carlile
2014 Traverse City Summer Microbrew & Music Festival
Mark your late summer calendars, there is a beer and music festival getting ready for your visit.
The 2014 Traverse City Summer Microbrew & Music festival is scheduled August 22 and 23rd at the Village at Grand Traverse Commons. Your standard admission ticket ($40 for a single day or $70 for the weekend) will get you access to 40 select breweries with over 200 different beers, ciders, meads, and wines. Included are five 80z pours and a costom tasting glass. You will also have access to brewery representatives, local food vendors, live music, and a silent disco tent (don’t feel bad if you had to look it up, I did too). There are also VIP tickets that get you into the festival an hour earlier than everyone else and also include side-stage viewing, home brewer’s tasting, private bathrooms (if you have ever been to a large festival, you know that can be a big bonus), seated dining area, lawn games, and more fun extras.
And that is just the beer, Continue reading
Stone Brewing Company’s Crime
Let’s get right down to it here. This beer is for people who like pain. Are you part Cenobite? This is the beer for you. While drinking this I tried not to think of the words “searing” And “flesh.” but how does it taste? To be honest I’m not sure. As I sit here sipping this glass, all I can taste is the peppers. It is like having a glass of hot sauce. The bottle claims to be a barrel aged Lukcy Basartd, but any hint of that flavor is blown away leaving you with this hot drink of fire. Some people like pepper beers. I admit that I will always want to give it a try when I find a new one. But this one may be too much.
The Can Stamp
I really can’t not share this because I think I could have used this item last weekend. What you see here is a simple (good) and fun(better) solution to a common problem. The ‘is this my beer?’ problem. This is The Can Stamp Now it is true, this product is not for every occasion. I often find myself drinking something other than what everyone else is drinking, so that makes it unnecessary. And usually when I am, it is out of a bottle and that would make in unfeasible. But for those times when we all have a common drink, and that drink is in a can, it is a good idea to find a way to differentiate your own. I used to do this by only cracking my can partially, but that is too easy to not notice. What we have here is simply a metal stamp. Press it into the side of your can to leave a nice little statement that can be seen, and felt by anyone who may be confused about the can’s owner. Personally, I like the “in Use” one, but there are a number of choices in order to cut down on the, let’s be honest, astronomical chances that you and someone else have brought the same Can Stamp to a party.
Samuel Adams Utopias Cigar
I had the pleasure of trying Sam Adams Utopias a number of years ago, and I was rightfully blown away. It truely is an experience I would recomend to anyone. The metal bottle, the strong aroma and the pleasantly palatable flavor all create quite the memory. And I was content in the fact that I probably would not get another chance to try it. It is simply a luxury that I could not afford to make a habit of. Well to my pleasant supprise, only a few years later I was presented with the opportunity again. And again, it was quite the memory. But after having two vintages of Utopias pass my lips, I was even more content with having my Utopias experience complete. But then I had to see this.
These Sam Adams Utopias seasoned cigars are available for a limited time from Ted’s Cigars.
From their website
The pairing is perfection. Rich nutty and fruit notes in the Utopias play well with the spicy complexity of the cigar, while the Dominican Republican, Nicaraguan and Brazilian tobacco blend provides a smooth, deep caramelized taste that compliments the Utopias’; woody, toffee flavors.
Now I am going to have to buy a set of these and track down another bottle of Utopias, for what I expect to be an extreme beer experience.
Where have I been these past months
So it sure has been a while hasn’t it? well I would like to welcome you back to the new and improved This Week In Beer! So I have spent the last few months streamlining the website and cutting out much of the fat (no one really used that map anyway). So hopefully this new site will usher in an era of smother functionality and smoother beer. I hope.
So beyond the trimmed down site, i have a docket of ideas for new features and shows. The social site is still here, but it is seriously trimmed down. The site is now responsive too so you should see a mobile friendly version when you visit from a smartphone or tablet. I do expect to add features back in as I see the need for them, but for now I think all we really need here is a regular stream of beer related content for you all to enjoy. and for me to enjoy as well.
But, I hear you say, did it really take you six months to redesign the site? It doesn’t even look that different, no way it took you that long! You are right. You caught me. There is more Continue reading
It Goes Together Like Beer and Baseball
Is that a saying? it really should be if it isn’t. and you really don’t have to be a regular at Thirsty Thursday to know it. But do you realize how interconnected beer and baseball really are? If you are curious, or even if you aren’t curious yet, you might be interested in this. The Summer of Beer and Whiskey: How Brewers, Barkeeps, Rowdies, Immigrants, and a Wild Pennant Fight Made Baseball America’s Game. Edward Achorn relays the story of Chris Von der Ahe, a St Louis entrepreneur who noticed that people were visiting his beer garden after baseball games. So he did the obvious thing, he bought a baseball team in order to sell more beer, and in the process, injected some much needed fun into America’s favorite pastime. Have I piqued your curiosity yet? A little bit? want more? have a listen to this interview with the author on All Things Considered He paints a picture of the wild west atmosphere of baseball in the late 1800s and the wild character that was Chris Von der Ahe.
via The Summer of Beer and Whiskey | Uncrate.
Randall Jr the Beer Infuser
From the mad geniuses at Dogfish Head, comes a flavor infuser made especially for you to add your own twisted touch to your favorite beer. Looks to work just like the way you make tea (people still make tea right?). You just need to throw in your preferred ingredients (whatever your crazy heart desires, coffee beans, nuts, fruit, gummi worms, I’m not judging), seal it up and throw it in the fridge for 10 minutes. Then you can unseal and drink it right from the Randall itself or pour through the integrated filter grid into your friends cups to share. The product page suggests adding flavors to your microbrews to add even more layers of complexity to your brew. Anyone looking to dabble in homebrewing could use this thing to test out their mad combinations before diving into a full brew. Better realizing that your walnut-broccoli beer won’t taste quite as good as you imagined before you actually go through an entire batch. Another good use for this could be to convince that friend of yours that simply will not give up his Miller Lite to try to expand his horizons by infusing his own beer with a little added flavor (give it some more hops, *gasp* “quadruple hops brewed”?!?). They’ve produced a “quality” infomercial to explain to you exactly why you need to own a Randall Jr which I’ve included after the break. Continue reading
