Infinium Tasting at Sam Adams Brewery

Although I've been living in Jamaica Plain for over 6 months, I had never visited the Sam Adams brewery. So when I found out that Gilt City Boston was hosting an Infinium tasting and a brewery tour, we had to check it out! To make things even better, Jim Koch, the founder of Sam Adams, was giving the tour.

Jim Koch is an interesting man. Not only did he create the recipe for one of the best selling American craft beers, but he's got a good wit about him. Among his stories, jabs at the "big guys", and general banter, I managed to note some of the more interesting topics that came up on his tour of the brewery:

• The original Jamaica Plain brewery is actually leased by Boston Beer Company, they do not own the property
• Jim Koch comes from a family of brewers-generations before him were brewers. Jim Koch was the first to breakthrough the competition and maintain the profitable and productive brewery that stands today.
• It was apparent during the tour that the average age of attendees was somewhere between mid 20s to mid 30s. Jim admitted and made it clear that this demographic was the future of craft beer.
  
• Sam Adams 48 IPA, which was only released for the first time in 2010, is the only India Pale Ale to use hops from three different countries: Germany, UK, and the US.
  

However, the star of the night was Infinium: a collaboration between Boston Beer Company, the largest craft brewer in the US, and Weihenstephen, the oldest continuously operating brewery in the world. The beer was presented in Champagne style flute glasses, sporting the Infinium logo in gold lettering. The beer was brewed as a traditional ale under the German Reinheitsgebot, however it was finished and stored as a Champagne. This storage allowed the beer to finish light and refreshing, with a fairly high carbonation.

Thanks again to Boston Beer Company, Gilt City Boston, and Jim Koch for an awesome night and great beer!

Lord Hobo "Official" Opening on Wednesday the 18th

If you've browsed the Boston section on BeerAdvocate.com over the past several months, chances are you've probably seen discussion around Lord Hobo, particularly about when it will actually open. Well the bar's owner, Daniel Lanigan, has made somewhat of an official announcement on BeerAdvocate that the bar will open up this Wednesday, November 18th. Boston beer lovers, your wish has been granted. Although the bar might be jammed, I will try and make it over for the opening night. For those who haven't checked out the menu, it is available on the Lord Hobo website:

http://www.lordhobo.com/

The menu looks to have some tasty plates and the opening draught list is impressive; I'm pulling for Lord Hobo to live up to the anticipation.

Previous B-Side Lounge (now Lord Hobo) Update

Andy Crouch from BeerScribe.com has been updating readers on the status of the proposed beer bar that is taking the place of the old B-Side lounge (the new bar is to be called Lord Hobo).

Based on a previous post by Andy that included a large portion of commentary from the meeting between the owner and Cambridge City commission, it seems that there has been difficulties in transferring the bar's license. The commentary is actually pretty interesting because of the questions that are asked regarding last call times and opinions of the neighbors of the location speaking up; it also sheds light on the amount of work that owners must go through to get places like this up and running.

Andy's post today discussed the most recent (good) news, and it looks like the transfer of the license has been approved. From the BeerScribe.com article:

"After the debate, which included the concerned input of a member of the Cambridge City Council, the commission voted to allow the license transfer with several conditions. The commission is requiring the Lord Hobo to submit monthly revenue receipts to demonstrate that it really does achieve its stated food-to-alcohol ratio and that the license is conditionally only allowed until 1 a.m., with the agreement of Lanigan." - from BeerScribe.com

It's good to see this place is moving in a positive direction, and I'm looking forward to the actual opening of Lord Hobo.

New beer bar coming to Cambridge

While cruising through the BeerAdvocate Boston group's page, I saw a post regarding an update on the property that once was the beloved B-Side Lounge. It looks like the property has been bought by Daniel Lanigan, the owner of well-known beer bars The Moan and Dove and The Dirty Truth.

Discussing the new establishment, Daniel says "the bar will continue to have a fantastic cocktail list. I will also try to add a world class beer list. Look for 40 taps, a bunch of bottles, and a consistent beer engine. There will also be a sick wine list." Count me in for opening night.

Brighton Beer Garden

On a drive through Brighton during lunch on Monday, I made my way past the building that once used to be SoHo. However, now stood Brighton Beer Garden. I had heard SoHo shut down but had no idea another establishment was already...established. I quickly drove by so I had no chance to see inside or anything, but apparently their "Opening Day Bash" as they call it is tomorrow, April 8th.

After doing a search for other "beer gardens in Boston," I came across the Boston Beer Garden, which has to be owned by the same company. This nar is located down in South Boston. If anybody has any input on Boston Beer Garden let me know.