The Associated Press has good news for us: Some Yakima Valley hop growers are pulling other crops to plant the beer-flavoring ingredient and planting new acreage in response to a worldwide shortage that caught everyone – brewers, dealers and growers – by surprise. This story makes me giddy. Growers are feverishly reconditioning yards and adding [...]

Meantime Brewing Company in London has signed a £5m deal with the Greenwich Foundation to excavate, renovate and recommence brewing at the Old Royal Naval College. “London is the home of India Pale Ale, Porter and Stout but – in time honored British tradition – we have allowed this rich heritage to be forgotten,” Meantime [...]

I was hoping that the new Miller Lite commercials would run during the NCAA basketball tournament because that’s the best chance I figure to have of seeing them for a while. Turns out Miller has posted them at its website (you’ll probably have to do the age check thing along the way), but not at [...]

Let’s start with what the brewer has to say: Matt Brophy of Flying Dog Ales talks about the intent behind the seasonal Garde Dog, as well as the way it tastes to him. Please notice that near the end he says, “We put our own spin on it.” Not to duck Christopher’s call for less [...]

You’ve probably heard about this: Today is the 75th anniversary of when breweries could resume selling beer, although it was months later until Prohibition officially ended and full strength beer returned. I mentioned Maureen Ogle’s excellent daily countdown a while back, and suggest you stop by if you haven’t been. Also read her opinion piece, [...]

Jeff Bell/Stonch has posted the roundup for The Session #14: Beer People. Many outstanding posts, and one terrific suggestion from Jay Brooks. But I wish I’d written this (and not only because it would mean I could still share a “snob beer” with my Dad): Bob is my Dad. He drinks Labatt’s Blue religiously. Before [...]

In setting the theme for The Session #14: Beer People Jeff Bell asked for “pen portraits.” At the risk of appearing lazy I’m letting the subject speak for himself. Ed Reisch was the fourth generation of his Springfield, Ill., family to oversee operations for Reisch Brewing Co. The brewery operated from 1849 until 1966, although [...]

Red Tractor beer is not a brand in the UK (as opposed to the Palisade Red Truck IPA from Colorado), but a stamp that assures it is made only with British ingredients that have been checked for quality assurance. Wells and Young’s has become the first major brewer to promote the Red Tractor logo. Red [...]

This BBC documentary on the English pub, really about much more, is worth the 40 or so minutes it runs. Grab a beer and get in the mood for Friday’s Session. Just for yucks, you might open a second browser when Pete Brown is being interviewed and head to his blog for a more current [...]

You are bound to see some April Fool’s posts today in the beer blogosphere, but the news that New Belgium Brewing in Colorado almost certainly will be packaging Fat Tire in cans is real. I simply missed the story in the The Fort Collins Coloradoan until now. Fat Tire is the only one of New [...]