The ceiling at Baumgartner’s Cheese store and Tavern in Monroe, Wisconsin, as seen from beside a glass of beer.
There was bad news for beer last week, and stories about the business and beer trends and all the usual stuff. You’ll find none of them here today. It is a holiday, Presidents’ Day (music courtesy of Loudon Wainwright III), so sticking to beer as one of life’s pleasures.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“I would have to say wild and sour ales are overrated. First, they take way too much time to make — imagine how much good beer could have been made in the interim? Second, they’re kind of gross. Who really wants to drink something that smells like a goat barn? And third, they cost way too much. Think of all the good beer you could have bought with that $20 you spent on one bottle.”
— Jeffrey Stuffings, Jester King Brewery co-founder
From We Asked 16 Beer Professionals: What’s the Most Overrated Beer Style?
This was a listicle with many redeeming qualities. Granted, some of them are business related, but on the whole they made me smile. Jester King brought two beers to the Weldwerks Invitational nine days ago. Spon 3-Year-Blend, which is wild and sour and the sort of beer Jester King is known for, might have been the best beer in a room full of amazing beers (see below). So maybe Stuffings winked when he finished these six sentences above. The other beer they brought? Nelson Bliss, a hazy IPA. It is 2025, after all. Take the time for some of the other answers, particularly from Heather McReynolds and Gary Rogers.
LEDE OF THE WEEK
I can barely hear Chit speaking over the sound of the boat engine.
“I said, I used to drive, but this guy goes way faster!” Chit beams, his chiselled grin just visible in the moonlight reflecting off the Chao Phraya river as we traverse through the northern suburbs of Bangkok. It’s 10pm on a Sunday, we’re on a speedboat, and we’re not exactly sober.
We make it to a small jetty where Chit’s wife Ann Chareonsuk, brother Natthaporn Saiklao—both business partners of his—and most of his team are waiting. As we disembark, Ann smirks.
“I thought you boys would never make it out of the brewery at the rate you were going,” Ann says. “We need to eat!”
From Down To The River We Ride — The Emergence of Independent Beer in Thailand
ALWAYS FOR PLEASURE
Zwickelmania Returns with Shuttle Service. “Experience samples directly from the Zwickel port, find unique beer releases, take tours, and meet brewers as they provide educational talks.”
#SnowDrinking in Portland. What happens if it snows during Zwickelmania?
Going big. An 11.7% ABV barley wine followed by a 12.3% ABC barrel-aged fruit beer. “Back when other people used to write beer blogs with tasting notes, the phrase “fireside sipper” tended to get thrown around in winter. I’m happy to wheel that one out once more and apply it to this (the barley wine) in the most complimentary way.” I’m thirsty for “back when.”
Best Beers from 2025 WeldWerks Invitational Festival. I already mentioned what might have been my favorite and should quit there.
Dark Arts. 108 stouts, 12 hours and 25 bands. “I only drink dark beer. I don’t waste time on that see-through shit.”
Black history in action. A barley wine from Montclair Brewery in New Jersey. “Black History Month allows us to highlight the stories, people, and flavors that have shaped our culture and community,” says co-owner Denise Ford Sawadogo.
FROM BLUE SKY
I have a bit of a cold, but with the sun shining outside and Masopustní Bock 16° at Ún?tický pivovar,staying home under a blanket drinking tea was not an option. I don't think I'll be staying for the merrymaking this time, tho…
— Pivní Filosof® (@pivnifilosof.bsky.social) February 15, 2025 at 5:42 AM
FROM INSTAGRAM
Thanks for the grins.