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Any Maine homebrewers wanting to grow their own hops (not a bad thought, in light of recent world hops shortages): I just received an email from Rick at Paris View Farm in Paris, ME (near Oxford Hills, for those that don’t know) letting me know that he’ll be digging and cutting hops rhizomes (the roots of the hops plants which are used to grow new vines) this week and they’ll be for sale at the farm for $10 a piece. Last year Paris View sold Chinook, Mt.Hood, Newport, Nugget, Perle, and Sterling varieties, so you can expect much of the same for ‘08.

For more information or to contact Paris View Farm to place an order, check out their website at parisviewfarm.com.

For more on how to grow your own hops, check out this “grow your own” feature from Brew Your Own Magazine.

Technorati Tags: hops rhizomes, hops, Maine, beer

Popularity: 15% [?]

The Maine Beer news reader is beginning to sound a bit like a broken record - the medals just keep on comin’ for the Shipyard Brewing Co. (and sister brewery Sea Dog). Each brewery took home a medal at the 2008 Australian International Beer Awards (AIBA) in Melbourne, Australia this past weekend.

To put it in a bit more context for those of us on the other side of the globe: 1,084 entries to the AIBA were received from 42 countries, so for both Shipyard and Sea Dog to take home awards (or for either to, for that matter) is pretty impressive. Shipyard Brewing Company’s Chamberlain Pale Ale won a Silver award in Class 3 – Ale, Packaged - British Style Pale Ale (no Gold was given in this category). Last year, Chamberlain took home a Bronze medal in this same category.

Sea Dog Brewing Company’s Sea Dog Bluepaw Wild Blueberry Wheat Ale was awarded a Bronze in Class 17 – Fruit Beer, Packaged (no Silver or Gold was given in this category). Bluepaw received this same award in last year’s competition.

For a complete list of the winners from the Australian International Beer Awards, click here.

Technorati Tags: Maine, Shipyard Brewing, Sea Dog Brewing, beer, the Australian International Beer Awards

Popularity: 15% [?]

What looks to be the first Maine brew fest of the summer, the Androscoggin Chamber of Commerce and Gritty McDuff’s present the first ever Maine Grains & Grapes festival at The Colisee in Lewiston on Saturday, June 21 at 2:00pm & 7:00pm.

This two-session event will feature breweries and wineries from around the State of Maine, including Shipyard, Gritty’s, Stone Coast, Tanguay & Son and plenty more to be announced soon!

Tickets are $20.00 in advance, $25.00 day-of-show (plus applicable fees online and by phone). Tickets will go on sale Wednesday, April 16 at 9:00am and can be purchased at The Colisee box office, charged by phone at 1-877-GO-TIX-GO, or online at www.thecolisee.com

I will see you guys there!

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Don’t get me wrong, I love Maine and the beer and bar scene around the state; there’s nowhere I would rather call my beer home. That being said, there are a number of things I wish my town did more like the town of Burlington, VT. Vermont seems to embrace their home grown beer like none other. From programs like the Passport Program and the Vermont Brewers’ Festival — both run by the Vermont Brewers’ Association — to start-ups like the new website Burlington Bars, Vermonters (Vermontians?) really seem to get it. burlingtonbars.com is described as “Vermont’s newest website completely dedicated to the local bar scene”. They are creating separate pages for each bar, pub and dance club in Burlington. Not only that but the actual bar owners have access to their listing so they’re able to update information (bands playing, drink specials, menu, etc.) themselves. And it’s all free of charge.

The site is still new (and about to undergo a redesign) so there’s not much there at the moment (I’d call it still in the “beta” phase) but it shows promise. From breweries like Magic Hat and Long Trail to Burlington mainstays like the Vermont Pub & Brewery and Ri-Ra, to the fact that Burlington — which isn’t all that different than Portland — supports such sites and organizations makes my jealous. Even just the fact that their brewers’ festival — again, not that different than Portland’s in thought — is both outdoors and during the summer, is something to be envious of.

I’m impressed that such a site can exist for one town in one small New England state, and the fact that it does shows the dedication of the people of Vermont to their beer. I wish it success, but more so - I wish such a thing would exist for Maine (unless I am that thing).

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“I think this would be a good time for a beer” - Franklin Roosevelt, April 7, 1933

While Prohibition officially ended on December 5, 1933, with the ratification of the 21st Amendment, something that is often overlooked happened earlier that year — newly-elected President Franklin D. Roosevelt took steps to fulfill his campaign promise to end the national ban on alcohol by spurring Congress to modify the Volstead Act to allow the sale of beer (with an ABV below 3.2%) in advance of the Twenty-first Amendment being ratified.

Thus on April 7, 1933, Roosevelt himself received newly legalized beer at the White House to toast what was the beginning of the end for Prohibition. In the 24-hours that followed, more than 1.5 million gallons of beer flowed as Americans celebrated. April 7 marks the date when beer was the only legal libation in the United States. For those of you who don’t want to do the math, that was 75 years years ago this Monday.

“April 7^th is a day to recognize the past 75 years of beer and the beer community’s contribution to American’s quality of life. The explosion of creativity and innovation by those who make beer is an American success story,” said Charlie Papazian, President of the Brewers Association.

For all the local readers: On Monday, every pint sold at all three Gritty’s locations (Portland, Freeport & Auburn) will cost only $2 all day. Ed Stebbins, Co-founder and Head Brewer of Gritty McDuff’s, said in the company’s official press release,

“We join with breweries, distributors, importers and beer lovers all over the U.S. to celebrate and say that enjoying beer is a legal privilege. This anniversary has special significance for Gritty’s because we’re Maine’s oldest Brew Pub and the first Brew Pub to open in Maine since the prohibition.”

For more information and a list of brewery celebrations by state please visit: www.75YearsofBeer.org.

And lastly, in other Gritty’s news, be sure and stop by their Portland brewpub a week from Monday (on April 14th) for the tapping of the first ever keg of Gritty’s new Rye.P.A., formulated by Gritty’s brewer Ben Low. Believed to be the only Rye beer to be brewed with the Ringwood yeast, this beer is sure to be a hit.

Technorati Tags: beer, 75 Years of Beer, Maine, Gritty’s, the Brewers Association

Popularity: 18% [?]

Like spring itself, spring beers don’t really exist in Maine. In order to have any impact, they would need to be on the shelf by mid-February — when it’s still very much the heart of winter — or stay on the shelf well into April or May, and by that time - if your summer ale isn’t out already, you’ll never recover.

So, instead of a “spring” ale, many Maine breweries will release special short-season experimental brews. Like Shipyard’s Brewer’s Choice (a Royal IPA this year) or Gritty’s Irish Red Ale. It was the latter that I was privileged enough to try on draft at the Portland Gritty McDuff’s last night.

During the first official meeting of the Maine Beer Writers’ Guild — which was very graciously sponsored by Gritty’s — I enjoyed a few pints of the Gritty’s IRA: a traditional Irish Red, with a twist; served on tap with a nitrogen infusion. Brewed especially for the St. Patrick’s Day season - in addition to the caramel flavors you’d expect from an Irish Red, the Gritty’s IRA was brewed with CaraAroma and roasted barley malts, giving it a very smoky character.

It was a very smooth (thanks to the nitrogen, which is much more common in stouts), easy-drinking beer which was a great addition to the hours of beer-related conversation. If you find yourself in Portland before the Vacationland appears on draft (when that happens, the IRA will be gone) hurry and grab yourself a pint - you’ll be glad you did!

Meanwhile, the May meeting of the Maine Beer Writers’ Guild will be hosted and sponsored by The Shipyard Brewing Company at the Inn on Peaks Island (check out the MBWG website for more).

Popularity: 15% [?]

By now many of you know that Peak Organic Brewing — a local Portland, Maine brewing company which contract brews certified organic beer at the Shipyard facilities — has released a new spring beer: Maple Oat Ale. The three other year-round beers from Peak don’t do too much for me (they’re not bad by any stretch, just not overly exciting) but I really enjoyed this one.

Available in either 12oz 4-packs or 22oz bombers, Peak’s Maple Oat Ale is a light copper-colored ale brewed with Maine-grown organic oats from granola company GrandyOats and Vermont-produced organic maple syrup from Butternut Mountain Farms in Morrisville, Vermont.

This beer pours a dark golden/light copper color with very little head retention (probably due to the high amounts of maple syrup in the boil). The Maple Oat Ale has a sweet malt taste and a smoother-than-normal mouthfeel — thanks largely to the oats — while it finishes with a distinct (but not overpowering) maple syrup sweetness.

I would definitely consider this my favorite of the Peak family and I hope they choose to keep it around for awhile (right now it’s only slated for the spring season). It is one of the easier drinking beers I’ve had in a long time; my 22oz bomber was gone not long after I realized I had even opened it. but, at a modest 5.2% ABV, that wasn’t a problem and there was certainly room left for more. But I think that Geoff Masland, Peak Organic Partnership Maestro, summed up the best part of this beer quite nicely in the company’s official press release which accompanied the beer’s release:

“We’ve collaborated with great folks to produce more than just a delicious craft beer, but also a positive experience from start to finish, farm to glass.”

For more on Peak Organic Brewing, read my interview with its founder Jon Cadoux from September ‘07.

Technorati Tags: beer, organic, Peak Organic, Maine, Vermont

Popularity: 18% [?]

I’ve been waiting to make this announcement until the website was (mostly) finished but today that happened, so here it goes: Last week, over good friends, good food and great beer — as all good ideas are born — the formation of the Maine Beer Writers’ Guild was hashed out.

The Guild’s goals are simple: “to promote better beer writing and celebrate Maine’s craft brew culture”. Membership is open to any writer of beer-related content (electronic or print) who resides in Maine.

Our next (and I guess first “official”) meeting is going to be Wednesday April 2nd and Gritty McDuff’s on Fore Street in Portland. Meetings will then occur monthly at different watering holes around the city.

Where do things go from here? Who knows, but it’s fun to be part of something! If you live in Maine and write about beer (in any form) and would like to join the Maine Beer Writers’ Guild, please use the contact form on the website. For more info or to see the blogs of the other members, visit www.mainebeerwriters.org

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There were some rumblings (here at BAB) and grumblings (elsewhere) a couple of weeks back about a new brewpub rumored to be opening in Saco, Maine. Well after today - thems ain’t rumors anymore, thanks to the Kennebec Journal. The paper reports that Geoff Houghton, the owner of the Liberal Cup in Hallowell, ME, will have his second brewery open by late spring. The paper reports,

The man who opened “The Liberal Cup Public House & Brewery” in Hallowell in November 2000 wants to expand his business to a second site to be known officially as “The Run of the Mill Public House & Brewery.”

The Run of the Mill Public House & Brewery will be the first commercial entity in Saco Island — a former factory site on the Saco River — near the city’s downtown, and will seat almost 200 people with an outdoor patio that overlooks the rapids in the Saco River.

If the will-be brewing set up looks at all familiar, that’s because the equipment formerly brewed beer for The Sugarloaf Brewing Company at the base of Sugarloaf ski resort in Carrabassett Valley.

Source: “Liberal Cup runneth over: Proprietor of Hallowell pub to expand brewery to Saco” [Kennebec Journal]

Technorati Tags: Saco, Maine, brewpub, beer, The Run of the Mill Public House & Brewery

Popularity: 18% [?]

Cinque Terre will usher in the first signs of spring on Sunday, March 16^th when it holds its First Annual “Eco Appetito – Good Eating for a Good Earth” event at its Portland restaurant, located at 36 Wharf Street. Scheduled for 1:00 - 4:00 pm, the festive Eco Appetito event will showcase abundant samples of local Maine food and beverages from dozens of producers. Most notably, guests will enjoy hand-crafted beer selections from Portland’s Allagash Brewing Company, the debut of Maine Oat & Maple Beer brewed by Peak Organic Brewing Company.

The open house event, expected to draw a capacity crowd, will benefit the “Food for Thought” program, offered at Ferry Beach Ecology School (FBES) in Saco, Maine. The innovative program at the school’s coastal campus teaches the value of eating naturally grown and organic food, and how to live and eat sustainably.

DETAILS:

What: Eco Appetito – Good Eating for a Good Earth

Where: Cinque Terre, 36 Wharf Street, Portland

When: Sunday, March 16th 1:00 - 4:00 pm

How (much): $50 per person. All proceeds will benefit the Ferry Beach Ecology School and its “Food for Thought” program. To purchase tickets or locate additional event information, visit www.fbes.org or call Maggie Daigle at (207) 671-0643.

To learn more about the Ferry Beach Ecology School and its acclaimed programs and offerings, visit www.fbes.org.

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