2013 GABF Fantasy Brewery Final Results

Last week we introduced PorchDrinking.com’s Inaugural GABF Fantasy Brewery Draft. We assembled a tremendous collection of national and local writers who selected breweries and earned points from medals won by those breweries during the GABF awards ceremony which took place on Saturday.  Here was the scoring guide we went by:

Read More

Samuel Adams | Fat Jack

ABV: 8.5% | IBU: 25

This small-batch, double pumpkin ale eluded me last year, so imagine my surprise when I found a bomber of it at the Kroger in little ol’ Athens, Ohio over the weekend. I was ecstatic! And I have to say, it did not disappoint. Made with 28 pounds of real pumpkin per barrel, from the moment I opened the bottle all I could think was “this is fall.”

Read More

GABF A Prospectus

What do New Glarus, The Bruery, Three Floyds, Sun King, Surly, Bells, Destihl, The Lost Abbey, Cigar City, Funky Buddha, and New Holland all have in common?  Aside being a tremendous lineup of breweries in their own right, they also served as one of the most ridiculous 20 minute murderer’s row starts to a Great American Beer Festival I’ve ever encountered.

Read More

GABF Winners Announced

Saturday we live tweeted the 2013 Great American Beer Festival awards ceremony where breweries were recognized by the Brewer’s Association for their accomplishments by style in this year’s competition. … Read More

Mrs. O’Leary’s Chocolate Milk Stout

ABV: 7%

Chicagoan or not, we all know of The Great Chicago Fire. Recently, I mentioned breweries like Revolution and Haymarket Brewing who incorporate a bit of Chicago history in … Read More

“The Beer Diaries” Craft Beer Series Comes To Denver

For the craft beer enthusiast, simply drinking a great beer sometimes isn’t enough. Director Mike Mann and his crew at The Beer Diaries, have taken their love for craft beer to the next … Read More

Awesomesauce- WhiteWhine

As you can probably tell by a few of my previous posts, there’s nothing I like more than a snarky comeback or witty remark.   Add in a little dose of … Read More

Logsdon Farmhouse Ales- Fresh Hop Seizoen

This past weekend I volunteered pouring beers at the Portland Fresh Hops Festival. The event is an annual tribute to our love of lupulin-laden libations that are crafted within hours of the hop harvest. While the vast majority of breweries showcased their share of lagers and pale ales, IPAs and CDAs, there was one beer that really stood out to me. Logsdon Farmhouse Ales’ Fresh Hop Seizoen piqued the interest of my taste buds in a way that no other fresh hop beer has. After about ten 4 oz. samplers of hop-forward beers, a subtly-hopped Belgian Saison was just what the doctor ordered. The Fresh Hop Seizoen from Hood River, OR is 7.5% ABV and really opened up a new perspective on fresh-hopped beers for me.

Read More

Roundtable Discussion – Pairings

While a lot of breweries are now stating suggested food pairings for their beers on either the bottles or their website, we here at PorchDrinking have decided to make similar pairing suggestions, but this time with activities. So we polled our staff: “What are your favorite beer and activity pairings?” Read More

2013 GABF Must Try Beer List

From our extensive pour list, a few of our resident beer geeks have put their heads together to compile a list of “must-try” beers at GABF. These are beers that we have either tried ourselves and give the highest praise or are from breweries that we have come to know and love who’s beer intrigues us enough to hype it up! So here we go, make sure you taste your way through some of these beers at GABF, and if you manage to catch one of our staff at the same booth, be sure to throw up a high-five! Read More

Mørke – Pumpernickel Porter by Beer Here

Beer Here – Mørke (Pumpernickel Porter)

ABV – 7.5% Read More

2013 GABF Fantasy Brewery Draft Results

Beyond the Beer – Wednesday – Battery 621

Join us this Wednesday night as Denver-based companies Crafting a Nation, Business of Fun, and PorchDrinking.com come together for the Inaugural event “Beyond the Beer Panel Discussion and Craft Beer Showcase.” The event will take place at Battery 621, 621 Kalamath Street, Denver, CO 80204; on October 9th, 2013. Doors to “Beyond the Beer” Hangout open at 6pm followed by a showcase featuring unique craft beers, reserved for this tasting event, at 8pm.

Read More

2013 GABF Pour List – Full Regional Breakdown

For the past month we’ve been calling and e-mailing breweries in order to provide you with a list of what your favorite breweries will be pouring at this weekend’s … Read More

Out of the Kitchen and into the Tap House: Women in Beer

By now it is obvious that craft beer is exploding across the nation. New breweries are opening up often, especially in Colorado, and the community continues to support the growing … Read More

Highland Brewing Company — St. Terese’s Pale Ale

ABV:5.1% IBU: 24

Sometimes I forget that Highland Brewing is an Asheville brewery, mostly because there are so many breweries drowning the small mountain town in booze.

And then I … Read More

2013 GABF Fantasy Brewery Live Draft

Welcome to the 2013 PorchDrinking.com 2013 GABF Fantasy Brewery Live Draft.

A few details:

The draft will run very much like a fantasy football snake style draft, meaning that the last person to pick in … Read More

Ultimate 6er for Your Government Shutdown

Well, Congress has done it again: managed to completely frak up everything. And this time, they have managed to shut down almost the entire government (yes, that thing they are supposed to keep running). So this unfortunate turn of events leaves a lot of feds and Congressional staffers sitting around at home without a paycheck. So what will they do? What will the rest of us do to support them and stand in solidarity? Why, drink beer of course! Here are some PorchDrinking pro-tips on the best beers to drink during the government shutdown:

Read More

Ballast Point Sculpin India Pale Ale

Ballast Point Sculpin India Pale Ale

ABV: 7%

IBU: 70

My usual process of discovering a new beer to review generally involves perusing through the beer aisles of my favorite stores and picking out new, interesting brews (confession: I’m a sucker for fancy labels). I also tend to gravitate toward more local brands (which for me is the DMV area). Tonight, however, was an exception. My roommate, who has not yet developed the taste for beer (the cause is not yet lost! I will be victorious!), picked up a bottle of Ballast Point Sculpin IPA out of San Diego, CA from the Whole Foods shelf and brought it home. Another confession: I had already enjoyed a glass of red wine before delving into the Sculpin. Though I doubt this ruined my palate, I feel full-disclosure is called for.

Read More

Homebrewing: Brewing with Fruit

For many brewers like myself, brewing is a creative outlet. Water is the blank canvas on which we play with malt, yeast and hops. While many of the worlds best beers are made with those four ingredients, there are many avenues for furthering creativity. In this week’s post, titled Homebrewing: Brewing with Fruit, I will discuss the ways of imparting fruit flavors to your homebrew. Read More