A Beer with Your Frites - Saus

Saus, the little Belgian cafe known for tasty frites and waffles in Faneuil Hall, recently got approval to start serving beer on location. Here is a sneak peak at their preliminary bottle and draught list:

Bottles/Cans
Gulden Draak
Piraat
Lindemans Frambroise and Peche
Duvel
Corsendonk
Wittekerke
Sixpoint Sweet Action
Trappistes Rochefort
Left Hand Milk Stout
Smuttynose Old Brown Dog Ale
Naragansett
Mystic Saison

Draught:
Pretty Things Jack DÓr
Ommegang Three Philosophers
La Chouffe
Unibroue Maudite
Lagunitas Little Sumpin Sumpin
Slumbrew Portter Square Porter
Crispin Cider
Ipswich Oatmeal Stout

A fantastic list of beers that's sure to be a welcomed addition to the area, which currently lacks bars serving better beer (with the exception of The Kinsale). I walked in last night (12/8) and it didn't appear that they were serving yet; I imagine they have to do some prep work with coolers, tap lines, etc. Can't wait for these guys to get this beer program rolling.

Duvel Green in Boston

Duvel has made it's mark as one of the world's best beers, being extremely drinkable and culminating all that is a great Belgian beer. This week, Duvel USA is bringing a new addition to the Boston bar scene: Duvel Green. While this isn't an altogether new beer, it is new to the Boston area.

Also known as Duvel Draft, Duvel Green is available only in draft form and (apparently) tastes quite a bit different from the original. I assume much of this come from a lower alcohol content (6.8% for draft vs 8.1% for the original) and the fact that Duvel Green is not conditioned in the bottle. I have yet to try Duvel Green, but beer bars around Boston will be pouring this week, so it shouldn't be too difficult to track it down. Here is a list of local bars that are having "launch" parties and will be pouring Duvel Green:

• Sunset Grill & Tap, Allston (Tuesday, 8pm)


• The Publick House, Brookline (Tuesday - BA Event posting)


• Deep Ellum, Allston (Wednesday)


• Redbones, Somerville (Wednesday)


• Jimmy's Pub, Mansfield (Wednesday)


• Biltmore, Newton (Wednesday)


• Armsby Abbey, Worcester (Thursday)


• Sierra Grille, Northhampton (Thursday)


• Old Forge Restaurant, Lanesboro (Thursday)

Pretty Things Latest Release - American Darling

Pretty Things Beer and Ale Project seem to have been pretty busy over the past few months. It's like I'm always hearing their name mentioned for either a beer festival, a beer dinner, or probably the most exciting, a new beer release. According to their Facebook fan page, the release of their newest beer, American Darling, will be available on the "draught market" this weekend. American Darling is a pale lager, which seems to stray away from the current offerings that Pretty Things has on the market. I've enjoyed all the beers that Pretty Things has released so far, and a 7% ABV lager sounds damn refreshing, especially on a hot summer day. Possibly when even mowing the lawn?

*Photo courtesy of Pretty Things Website*

7/16 UPDATE: Just picked up a bottle of this from Blanchard's in Allston yesterday, so it is now available for store purchase.

BeerAdvocate Recognition and ACBF

Boston.com has a great article on BeerAdvocate and the Alström brothers (thanks to Jordan for passing along), which discusses how BA was founded, the story behind BA's success, and what they've done with the craft brewing industry.

Not only is the BA Website and magazine great for beer drinkers to go read up on beer reviews and find out about events and releases, it holds a real power for brewers. David Yarrington of Smuttynose Brewing sums up this power nicely, saying "we don't have the dollars to spend on marketing or advertising...The ability to generate these underground buzzes is something we can't buy." I can think of a number of beers which I never heard of, but then read something about them on BA or other beer sites and was instantly curious as to what this beer was like. The article mentions the Portsmouth Brewery's Kate the Great, which got a cult-like following with the help of community sites like BA. Now there is an annual Kate the Great Day, where enthusiasts meet at the brewery on the release day of Kate the Great. I can't imagine there is much advertising done by Portsmouth Brewery, but the way that they have embraced this following is a great example of how craft brewers can reap the benefits of organizations like BA.

On a semi-related note, BA is hosting the American Craft Beer Festival this Friday and Saturday. It should be a great time, with a seriously impressive brewer line-up, sporting 300+ beers over the 2 days.

Cough Up the Change for That Beer

As I'm sure many of you Massachusetts residents now know, the state Senate approved a sales tax increase last night, increasing the rate from 5% to 6.25%. I imagine if this type of change was made and nobody was informed, maybe 1 in 50 would actually notice the extra $0.60 on their $50 purchase. However, if you were buying $50 worth of beer before, more people may notice the extra $3.10 they would have to cough up. That's because along with this tax hike, beer, wine and liquor are no longer exempt from the state's sales tax.

The tax really is more of an inconvenience than anything for the consumer. I can really only see this new tax affecting those who buy in bulk or frequently purchase high-priced alcohol. However, for the people who go out and buy a 6 or 12-pack of beer once a week, I don't see this changing purchasing habits. I don't see people shifting from more premium, craft beer to cheaper macro-beers just because of the tax, either. That being said, maybe Massachusetts liquor stores who generate large incomes from those who do buy in bulk will suffer. Either way, the newly added sales tax doesn't help deter the nickname "Taxachusetts.".

Will this new sales tax affect your beer/wine/liquor purchasing habits?

King of Biers...

So if you haven't heard, InBev and Anheuser Busch closed on a deal, with InBev paying a cool $52 billion for the largest brewing company in the world (based on revenue).

It will be interesting to see what happens in the upcoming months and how, if at all, the business changes. Lowered prices of already cheap beer? Greater availability of InBev imports? Whoop-dee-doo.

This just comes off as another step back for the craft brewers...how about a couple billion thrown towards increasing hops production? Oh yea and of course there is the whole "loss of a great American heritage"...isn't that what it's all about in this country?!?!?

Beer Is Important, But Come On...

...I think the life of your first born child may take precedent over a 30 rack.

A fellow co-worker sent me this CNN article, which makes a pretty good case for this Australian as a nominee for the Worst Parent of the Year award.

Now if these were glass bottles, this might be a completely different story...