Thursday, April 06, 2006

Publicanista! ... April 6, 2006.


In this edition of Publicanista!:

I. SPRING BREAK ON THE HORIZON: PUBLICANISTA! PUBLISHING SCHEDULE FOR APRIL, 2006.

II. FROM THE HAND PULL: NABC ST. RADEGUND BITTER.

III. RECENT NEWS AND ARTICLES AT THE POTABLE CURMUDGEON’S BEER BLOG.

IV. DRAFT BEERS: OUR LIQUID, DAILY BREAD, ON TAP AT RICH O’S AND SPORTSTIME.

V. BOTTLE LIST NEWS: NEW GRIST & FOUNDERS IMPERIAL STOUT.

VI. (!) IN WHICH PROFESSOR GESSER DELIVERS THE SPRING & SUMMER SCHEDULE OF SPORTS 'N' BEER BUS TRIPS.

VII. EVENTS, HOURS AND RELATED FACTS.

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I. SPRING BREAK ON THE HORIZON: PUBLICANISTA! PUBLISHING SCHEDULE FOR APRIL, 2006.

The Curmudgeon's spring break has come, and typically last-minute plans call for remote travel blogging from the road.

Which road would that be? Previously, I sketched the outline in articles at the Curmudgeon’s beer blog:

Feb. 1: "Go West" -- or, where the Rogue brewers are.

Jan. 14: The Curmudgeon does Oregon? Americana? Is anyone safe?

Or, a journey through the heart of red state darkness in order to visit the relative safety of the blue-clad coast.

Publicanista! will go on hiatus until April 27.

Assuming we achieve WiFi connectivity, reports will appear at The Potable Curmudgeon and NA Confidential.

II. FROM THE HAND PULL: NABC ST. RADEGUND BITTER.

Currently on the hand pull is a purpose-brewed, cask-conditioned batch of English-style "strong" bitter that we're calling NABC St. Radegund Bitter in honor of the pub in Cambridge where several us have consumed pints drawn by the genial proprietor, Terry.

NABC St. Radegund Bitter honors a pub, a publican and a dragonslayer.

Later in April, we'll be ready for a variety of NABC cask-conditioned ales to appear, among them Elector, Bob's Old 15-B and two others of an experimental nature (think: cute little wooden pins where the JW Lees came from).

For more information on cask-conditioned ale:

Horse Brass Pub (where our friend Biscuit works)
Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA)
Warm, Flat and Boring -- the Truth About Cask Ale, from Rate Beer.

III. RECENT NEWS AND ARTICLES AT THE POTABLE CURMUDGEON’S BEER BLOG.

Here are recently posted articles:

NABC St. Radegund Bitter honors a pub, a publican and a dragonslayer.

Beer in Old Albania, and the "blessed unrest bawdy balkan bacchanal."

New brewpub in Columbus, Indiana?

Miller CEO: “It is as if we were promoting beer as the official beverage of the knuckleheads.”

Mailbag: Gwatkin ciders and perry in polypins?

LouisvilleHotBytes will join LEO in providing Louisville area "restaurant reviews and food-and-drink coverage."

IV. DRAFT BEERS: OUR LIQUID, DAILY BREAD, ON TAP AT RICH O’S AND SPORTSTIME.

Our NABC beers.
Brewed in New Albany by NABC’s Jesse Williams, with assistance from Jared Williamson.

Bob's Old 15-B ... We're calling it a robust, brown Porter precisely because style definitions were meant to be bent.

Croupier IPA ... Jesse's homage to our casino employee clientele is modeled on the English interpretation, with a few American flourishes.

Community Dark ... Based on English Mild, and our light-bodied dark quaffer. 5% abv.

Elector ... Making Democracy pointless since 2002; English malt, American hops. 7.2% abv. Double Red?

Hoptimus ... Double IPA as a regular daily offering? Ya gotta believe.

St. Radegund Bitter ... Cask-conditioned English bitter from the hand pump.

Guests from near and far.
Market pricing.

Staples: These pour all the time and will be available throughout Gravity Head 2006.

Alpha King

Arrogant Bastard

Bell’s Two Hearted Ale

Guinness Stout

Lindemans Framboise

Pilsner Urquell

Sierra Nevada Pale Ale

Smithwick’s Irish Ale

Spaten Premium Lager

Sprecher Root Beer (non-alcoholic)

Upland Wheat

Rotating (limited engagement):

Augustijn Abbey Ale

BBC Jefferson’s Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout

Bell's Consecrator Doppelbock

Bell’s Rye Stout

Founders Centennial IPA

JW Lees Manchester Star

Spezial Rauchbier

Stone Smoked Porter

Rogue Dead Guy

Warsteiner Premium Dunkel (okay, it's a favor to a salesperson)

Clipper City (Heavy Seas) Below Decks, 11% abv

Gale’s Prize Old Ale (2004), 9% abv

Great Divide Old Ruffian Barley Wine, 10.2% abv

La Rulles Cuvee “Best Wishes”, 7.3% abv (moved from Saturnalia MMV)

Stone Old Guardian Barley Wine, (2005) 11.26% abv

't Smisje Dubbel, 9% abv

Two Brothers Bare Tree Weiss Wine, 10.2% abv

Bullpen:

Breckinridge 471 Small Batch Double Hopped IPA

Rogue (John's Locker Stock) Mogul Ale (fourth keg)

Rogue (John's Locker Stock) Skull Splitter (Gravity-listed; second keg)

‘t Smisje BBBourgondier

Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Barley Wine

Spaten Premium Bock (Maibock)

Two Brothers Hop Juice

Upland Dragon Fly IPA

Upland Winter Warmer

V. BOTTLE LIST NEWS: NEW GRIST & FOUNDERS IMPERIAL STOUT.

With Bard's Tale still absent from the shelves, Indiana's Cavalier Distributing has located another gluten-free product: New Grist Beer -- more sorghum-based hope for Celiac beer lovers.

It's in stock now, both for on-premise consumption and carry-out. Note that Keg Liquors in Clarksville also has New Grist in stock. Here's the New Grist Beer website (Lakefront Brewing Company).

Also available in limited quantities is Founders Imperial Stout, a 12-ounce, 12% abv diet killer that I'll be unable to cellar because it's too good to wait that long. But those with the discipline to do so -- we admire you.

Remember that later this spring and summer, I'm going to be doing bottle-only theme tastings with French Bieres de Garde and Belgian Lambics. These are piling up in the storeroom as I write.

Check the chalkboard in the front room at Rich O’s for bottled specials and seasonals. These are the bottled beers not carried on the everyday bottled list, and represent a wide variety of flavors and textures for your tasting enjoyment.

VI. (!) IN WHICH PROFESSOR GESSER DELIVERS THE SPRING & SUMMER SCHEDULE OF SPORTS 'N' BEER BUS TRIPS.

Take it from those who've gone along for past ride -- these are great fun. Follow the link for the spring and early summer schedule, which includes Chicago Cubs games for the first time ever.

Spring/Summer 2006 sports ‘n’ beer events from Rick and Jeff tours: Horses, golf and the Cubbies.

VII. EVENTS, HOURS AND RELATED FACTS.

General business hours:

Sportstime Pizza opens at 11:00 a.m. Monday through Saturday. Rich O’s opens at 3:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and at 1:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. We are not open on Sunday except during special events. The same food and beer is available at all times in both rooms, so you may have lunch and a beer in the Sportstime Pizza dining area during those hours when Rich O’s isn’t open. The brewery is available for a look-see if one of us is around and we’re not busy.

Rich O's: The front dining rooms at Rich O's are designated as non-smoking areas. The bar area and Red Room are open for smoking (cigarettes, cigars, pipes). We strongly discourage clove cigarettes, which are divisive even among smokers.

Sportstime: Smoking is permitted in the entirety of Sportstime Pizza.

2006 events:

Weekly on Wednesday evening @ 7:00 p.m.

Drinking Liberally (New Albany & Southern Indiana) meets in the Red Room each Wednesday. Contact organizer Rich Morris for details.

Saturday, April 22

Misha Feigin.

Musician, writer and storyteller Misha Feigin returns to Rich O's for good singing and good playing, starting at 9:00 p.m.

Saturday, April 29

Alefest 2006 at Keg Liquors in Clarksville (2 pm to 6 pm)

From the irrepressible owner, Todd Antz, comes this explanation:

"Please join us for our first ever Beer Festival, we have dubbed Fest of Ale 2006. Falling on the Saturday between Thunder and the Derby, we will have brewers and importers from all around the world on site for a huge event. So far we have Upland Brewing Company (Bloomington, IN) Bluegrass Brewing Company (Louisville, KY), Kalamazoo Brewing (brewers of Bell's Beers), Barley Island Brewing (Noblesville, IN), Thirsty Dog Brewing, New Albanian Brewing (New Albany, IN), Browning's Brewing (Louisville, KY), Wetten Importers (Delirium, Gouden), and Eurobrew Importers (Xingu, St. Peters). Our three craft beer distributors (World Class Beverages, Cavalier Distributing, and North Vernon Beverage) will also be there to fill in the gaps of beers not available from our brewers. There will be food, music, and plenty of great beer. We even have a silent auction planned with all proceeds going to Bridgepointe Goodwill Services. Tickets for this event will be $25 in advance, and $30 the day of the event. Tickets are available for advance purchase from our website at http://www.kegliquors.com/festofale.htm."

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Saturday, May 13

NEW DAY: Fifth Annual FOSSILS Breweriana Sale

11 a.m. - 5 p.m. in the Prost special events room at Rich O's.

Featuring: Pre-prohibition to Contemporary Breweriana ... Local breweries to International ... Antique Bottles, Signs, Mirrors, Glassware, Trays, Clocks, Lamps, Books, and much more.

Dealer space is only $15.00, and clubs are welcome! For information contact Kira Tash.

Rich O's will be open for business as usual, and Roger is also staging his bottled beer inventory reduction sale at the same time as the breweriana sale - there will be some closeouts, some overstocks, and some surprises from the cellar.

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Tuesday, May 16

In Prost (banquet room): Progressive Pizza and Preservation: Paint Your Historic House Beautiful.

Learn the basic guidelines for selecting the appropriate colors for historic buildings. Bonus tips from the presenter on interior and exterior finishes and techniques to give you professional results. Free and open to residents of New Albany and surrounding communities.

Sponsor: Porter Paints.

6:15 PM – 8:30 PM.

Participants purchase own beverages. Limited to 30 participants. Reservations required by calling Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana – 284 4534.

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Friday & Saturday, May 19 & 20

Ohio River Valley Folk Festival in Madison, Indiana

NABC will be vending beer at this inaugural fest in Madison. Here's a description, from The Madison Courier newspaper:

The Ohio River Valley Folk Festival will bring echoes to Madisonians living in the 21st century — echoes of how their ancestors worked, wrote and sang music, fashioned distinctive crafts and prepared foods unique to the people of a river town.

The new festival ... is scheduled for May 19-20 along Vaughn Drive from West Street to Poplar Street.

The festival will feature folk music, old-time storytellers, a special tent for children, juried folk arts, and refreshment stands that will strive to offer food and drink like Madisonians of the 19th century might have consumed.

Our friend Steve Thomas is in charge of the libations, so it can’t be anything but good.

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June 2

Publican announces DaveFest 2006.

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Saturday, August 12

Great Taste of the Midwest in Madison, Wisconsin.

It’s one the top three beer fests in the nation, a perennial box-office sell-out, and certainly the big event with the most relevance to NABC. Web site information is dated, but will be revised later in 2006.

Credits:

Thanks to Jim Bell for his photographic prowess, which we share with you from time to time.

Readers who aren’t as familiar with our business should go to http://www.newalbanian.com/ and http://www.richos.com/ for more information.

NABC is a member of the Brewers Association and Brewers of Indiana Guild.

Questions or comments about editorial content should be directed to Roger A. Baylor: potable@richos.com.

THE END.

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