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The Science of the Cooler and Why You Should Love Your Local Specialty Beverage Buyer

April 27, 2017 |

So I’ve got 30 minutes to kill. The oldest son is safely absorbing useful information at his tutor’s home which happens to be three floors above the Whole Foods Market in the Central West End. Lucky for me this particular Whole Food Market happens to have a wonderful beer bar, with some excellent beers on tap.

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Heineken Ad Proves We’re Not All That Different, and Beer Brings People Together

April 27, 2017 |

Featured Image Credit: Heineken.com

We all have different opinions and different views of the world, but it is key that we learn to have open and honest discussions about those differences. If no one is willing to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes, you end up with a divided nation full of people who are more interested in stalling their opponents’ agendas than in finding a path toward the common good. The new “Worlds Apart” video from Heineken posits that beer can be key to discovering that common ground. Read More

Beer Shed Building: Watch These Two Guys Refurbish an Old Shed into an Awesome Backyard Beer Getaway

April 27, 2017 |

Picture Tree House Masters meets Man Caves in this summer’s newest home improvement series, Beer Shed Building with Ben & Toby. That is the idea at least. A show where two guys repurpose old sheds into backyard pubs.

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Craft Beer’s Identity Crisis

April 27, 2017 |

Peanut butter, chai tea, lemongrass, oranges, roadkill, lemons, gunsmoke, dill: these are a few of the featured ingredients in craft beers on display at my local bottle shop. The variety does not stop there. How about a triple-pale ale, dry-hopped, cosmic-toasted, sour-peat-pilsner-stout loaded with enough alcohol to sterilize a barbershop comb? Is there a “normal” in beer anymore? And when did the word “infused” become the craft beer buzzword? Everything is infused.
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Ultimate 6er | Feeling Nostalgic About Pop-Punk Music

April 26, 2017 |

I recently attended 2 sold out nights of New Found Glory’s 20 years of pop-punk anniversary tour in Philadelphia. I was feeling a little nostalgic to think this band has been around for 20 years now. They had performed during the first concert I ever went to. Completely unsure of what to expect at my first concert, I stood in a mosh pit with platform sandals on. Years later, I learned not to wear that same footwear attire to a concert ever again. Read More

Half Acre Beer is Experimenting with Mixed Fermentation

April 25, 2017 |

Featured image courtesy of Half Acre Beer Co.

Half Acre Beer Co. is expanding and it’s a good sign for Chicago craft beer drinkers. Their new Balmoral Brewery space, a massive 60,000 square foot expansion, is getting closer and closer to opening to the public. Not only does this mean more real estate, but it also means more opportunities to brew beer, including the newly announced mixed fermentation program at their original brew spot in Lincoln Square.

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The Beer Industry’s Creativeness to Help the Earth

April 24, 2017 | 1

Photo Courtesy of Saltwater Brewery

If you haven’t had your share of planet friendly posts this weekend, we’ve got you covered. In honor of Earth Day, we are highlighting the ingenuity and creativity of the beer industry’s actions to help the Earth. Some of the eco-friendly initiatives are implemented for the brewery’s love of the environment. Others are formed out of necessity. By protecting the environment and minimizing resource usage, breweries protect their access to future ingredients to make our future beers. Read More

Vinyl & Beers | Milli Vanilla-i and Other Tales

April 20, 2017 |

As with all great vices, we tell ourselves that as long as we are contributing something positive to the world, then we can indulge our heart’s desires. At least that is what I have convinced myself with Vinyl and Beers, that I can drink as much beer and buy as many records as I deem necessary for the sake of beauty. Being fully committed to my art, I pair a record from my collection with every beer I drink at home, and these are their stories. DUN DUN.

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BREAKING | Alamo Drafthouse Sloans Lake Location to Open May 15

April 20, 2017 |

We’ve known for decades that movies are best enjoyed with an endless supply of popcorn and a cold beer. In fact, this marrying of these two joys has remained an earnest focus here on PorchDrinking.com, which is why earlier this past year, we were thrilled to begin a partnership with Alamo Drafthouse in Denver. We’re thrilled to announce that Alamo’s second Denver location, Alamo Drafthouse Sloans Lake, is set to open May 15 at 4255 W. Colfax Ave.

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What to Drink at a Cincinnati Reds Game

April 18, 2017 | 2

Featured image courtesy of Pixabay

Cincinnati is known for its rich history with baseball and beer. In fact, Cincinnati was the first city to have a professional baseball team in 1869. And with a large German population, the city also had over 30 breweries during those early baseball years. This prompted the then Red Stockings to serve beer at baseball games, which was quite controversial at the time. So it’s easy to see that beer and Red’s baseball have been a critical part of Cincinnati’s history from the very beginning.

It is no different today; the Queen City is still in love with its baseball team and the city’s love for beer is evident by the nearly 40 breweries that now call Cincinnati home. That love for craft beer and baseball is displayed at Great American Ball Park (GABP) where there is an impressive beer list. For me, I immediately look toward the local craft beer on the list and two stand out: Rhinegeist‘s Hustle and MadTree Brewing’s Rounding Third. Not only are these tasty brews but they are also baseball themed.

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Style Profile | Saison

April 13, 2017 |

Every other month, PorchDrinking.com will tackle a style profile and, this month, the subject involves Saisons. Our motivation involves educating beer drinkers so they can more accurately identify beers and calibrate their senses accordingly. Beer can be a complex topic but worry not because PorchDrinking is here to show you the ropes – like an older brother or sister, only with less abuse and more information.

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Brewery Showcase | Noon Whistle Brewing

April 11, 2017 |

Photo Credit: Noon Whistle Brewing via Facebook

The Noon Whistle Brewing story resembles one enjoyed by innumerable craft breweries, especially in Chicago. The brewery first sought to create a niche within the booming craft beer market by becoming Chicago’s premier session-beer location. But, now in its third year, abundant success has forced the Noon Whistle Brewing crew to adapt its vision, both to accommodate its growing business, and also satisfy a desire to brew a variety of great beer. Noon Whistle has transitioned from audience-seeker to a trusted name brand. 

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Why Are Blood Orange Beers Suddenly So Popular?

April 7, 2017 | 2

*Photo from 21st Amendment Brewery

If you read over almost any tap list these days, you’re bound to find a fruity IPA or Wheat Ale sandwiched between a bevy of other tasty options. And while many breweries these days make fruit-forward beers due to their general appeal and drinkability, there seems to be one fruit being listed more and more in the ingredients list: blood orange.

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Frezi Bouckaert | A Belgian Girl and Her Journey to Craft Beer

April 6, 2017 |

“I was his light in the darkness.”

Frezi Bouckaert smiled slyly as she made the comment. Frezi further noted, “It was dark and I was his shining light.” As Frezi started explaining this rather somber statement, I realized she was speaking both literally and figuratively. Let me give you a little bit of context. Frezi met her husband Peter Bouckaert (yes, that Peter) spelunking in Belgium. When dating, some folks like to go to the movies, see live music or wine and dine; Frezi and Peter would go caving. A lot. Read More

Second Life Brewing Co. Debuts The AfterLife Series

April 1, 2017 |

Second Life Brewing Co. has created a new program to help send off your loved ones in a very special way. Jon Draugr, founder and owner of Second Life Brewing Co. said, “We were sitting around having drinks after my great-aunt died about eight months ago and we got to talking about different funeral traditions. You know, Viking burials at sea, Egyptian mummies, spreading ashes at sea, and that is when it hit us, almost all at once. What if we brewed a beer specially made for the family? This wouldn’t be any beer though, no! This would be a beer brewed with the deceased’s ashes sprinkled in.”

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What Happens When Craft Beer Replaces Your Neighborhood Bar?

March 31, 2017 |

I graduated from college almost exactly eight years ago and pretty soon thereafter found my way west to explore the wild unknown that is Colorado. As you can clearly tell, I’m no native, but I’ve been around Denver long enough to have witnessed the transformation of this city in a variety of different ways.

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Corner Bars | Pat Connolly’s: A Story of Beer, Blues & Fried Chicken

March 30, 2017 |

Sometime in the mid-1990s, when I first returned to St. Louis as a legal drinker, my friend Mike Green took me to the Black Thorn Pub located on the corner of Wyoming and south Spring in South St. Louis. Unknown to me at the time, this visit started my secret obsession with corner bars.

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Event Preview | Pintwood Derby 2017 at Flying Saucer

March 29, 2017 |

I thought I had suppressed the memory. I thought I buried it deep within the micro-depths of my subconscious mind, only to have it shoot straight to the top of my brain after receiving an email that mentioned those three words – Pinewood Derby Race.

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Why I Will Not Wait in Line for Beer

March 28, 2017 | 3

Feature photo credit: Russian River Brewing Co.

First off, let me preface by saying, I do not judge those who choose to wait. There is a level of admiration I have for those who make that tumultuous trek to a tiny, or huge, brewery in the middle of nowhere to wait in line for hours upon hours for their favorite golden nectar. If you honestly enjoy this beer geek rite-of-passage, who am I to tell you otherwise? I, on the other hand, have never waited in line for a beer release and I have no plans to do so in the future. I will never taste Pliny the Younger, and I’m completely okay with that. 

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Brewery Showcase | Briar Common Brewery + Eatery

March 22, 2017 |

Feature photo credit: Briar Common Facebook

When Kent, Greg and Travis Dawson decided to make their dream of opening a brewery become a reality they started to look around the brewery scene in Denver and they realized that while there were plenty of new breweries opening up, very few of those breweries were dedicated to serving outstanding food to go along with the high-quality beer they were brewing.

“It was clear that the brewpub model was quickly being outnumbered by the manufacturing/tasting room model.”

Kent Dawson, co-founder of Briar Common Brewery + Eatery

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