In this edition of Publicanista!:
SORRY - I'M A DAY LATE THIS WEEK.
I. PUBLICAN’S CHOICE: SCHLAFLY CALENDAR SHUFFLE.
II. GRAVITY MADNESS 2007: AN UPDATE.
III. NABC BREWERY UPDATE: BREWER'S BEST FRIEND SERIES UNDER WAY.
IV. RECENT NEWS AND ARTICLES AT THE POTABLE CURMUDGEON’S BEER BLOG.
V. DRAFT BEERS: OUR LIQUID, DAILY BREAD, ON TAP AT RICH O’S AND SPORTSTIME.
VI. CALENDAR OF EVENTS, HOURS AND RELATED FACTS.
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I. PUBLICAN’S CHOICE: SCHLAFLY CALENDAR SHUFFLE.
The Schlafly beer and brewing event in Prost, which originally was scheduled for Saturday, March 24, has been postponed until Friday, April 27.
The St. Louis brewery’s owner, Tom Schlafly, will be on hand the 27th of April to discuss his memoir, "A New Religion in Mecca", and sign copies of the book. The Gravity Head listed keg of oak-aged barley wine will be kept for the 27th, and other of the brewery’s beers will be on hand, too. Stay tuned for further details.
II. GRAVITY MADNESS 2007: AN UPDATE.
For the next three or four weeks, I'll be providing a Gravity Head "lineupdate" each Monday at the Potable Curmudgeon blog. Each day for the remainder of the following week, the Monday posting will be updated if possible to reflect the current tap status. Here is the most recent:
Gravity Head update: Monday, March 19 (updated through Friday morning, March 23).
Entering the third weekend of Gravity Head 2007, a quick scan of the listings reveals that we’re about 60% of the way through the choices.
That’s fast, especially when one considers that nowadays we receive more multiple kegs of small capacity sizes and more standard-sized kegs overall. It adds up to more gravity beers being consumed more quickly by greater numbers of enthusiasts, but now that the weather is warming, consumption of these big beers will begin to slow.
Perhaps it’s time for a reconsideration of the calendar.
Gravity Head originated on a lark in 1999, and only later became the law onto itself that so dominates the first quarter of each year. Although there have been exceptions borne of necessity, we’ve generally looked to early March as the best time to stage Gravity Head. It’s a crazy month by any consideration, with St. Patrick’s Day and the NCAA basketball tournament also drawing crowds, and the festive atmosphere generated by these events in concert with Gravity Head is much fun, and obviously good for business.
It used to be that we’d have perhaps 20 to 30 kegs of listed Gravity Head beers, but now upwards of 60 are ordered, and more if multiples are counted. This had had the effect of extending Gravity Head’s springtime shelf life, to an extent that in 2006, with an earlier starting date in February, it took until late April for all the beers to be consumed. Without initiating another global warming debate, it remains that warmer weather has been arriving earlier, and as noted above, warm weather has a slowing effect on gravity consumption.
That, and also the onset of gravity fatigue …
Combining all these factors, I’m considering moving Gravity Head 2008 – the 10th edition – forward two seeks into late February, as was the case in 2006 during Kate’s pregnancy. The move would put Gravity Head starting on Friday, February 29, 2008.
Your thoughts are solicited. Good or bad? Conflicts you’re aware might occur? Let me know using the usual avenues, and thanks for patronizing NABC.
Also, see:
Gravity Madness: March isn't just about basketball anymore.
Gravity Head 2007 #17: And you thought the 2000 Presidential election was close.
See the Gravity Head schedule here.
Download the complete Gravity Form 2007 here (.pdf)
III. NABC BREWERY UPDATE: BREWER'S BEST FRIEND SERIES UNDER WAY.
Jared Williamson offers this report from the NABC garage brewhouse:
I want to bring everyone up to speed on a new project called Brewer’s Best
Friend Series – basically, three beers made in honor of Jesse’s and my canine companions (yes, this idea came from John Maier of Rogue and his dog Brewer).
First up (brewed 2-16-07) is: Jasmine the Mastiff Sweet Stout.
Malt: 2-row, roasted barley, chocolate
Hops: East Kent Goldings and Fuggles (for bittering only)
Spices: Lactose sugar, spiced Mexican chocolate, honey
O.G.: 1073
ABV: Circa 7%
IBUs: 36
The mastiff is the gentle giant of English-bred dogs -- loyal, noble, big and lazy for the most part.
IV. RECENT NEWS AND ARTICLES AT THE POTABLE CURMUDGEON’S BEER BLOG.
Here are recently posted articles:
Actually, he wasn't the model.
"A return to Market Street Brewery."
The Curmudgeon will be coming out of retirement: Group beer hunting trips are planned for 2008.
Guinness on tap at Bistro New Albany.
V. 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 much 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.
Community Dark ... Based on English Mild, and our light-bodied dark quaffer. 5% abv.
Croupier IPA ... Jesse's homage to our casino employee clientele is modeled on the English interpretation, with a few American flourishes.
Elector ... Making Democracy pointless since 2002; English malt, American hops. 7.2% abv. Double Red?
Hoosier Daddy ... revised hopping, somewhere in the range of Imperial Red. Circa 7% abv.
Hoptimus ... Massive.
St. Radegund ... Successor to Beak's Best; all-English, ESB territory, circa 5.5% abv.
Guests from near and far (market pricing).
ON TAP NOW: Everyday staples.
Sprecher Root Beer (non-alcoholic)
ON TAP NOW: Rotating selections (limited engagement).
Gravity. See: Gravity Head update: Monday, March 19 (updated through Friday morning, March 23).
In the bullpen (ready for duty when called upon to serve).
More gravity. For quite some time to come, in fact.
VI. CALENDAR OF 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.
Smoking.
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.
Wi-Fi.
Both dining areas are hotspots. Please observe proper etiquette when using our Wi-Fi service, and do not disturb or offend others with the Anheuser-Busch web site or other examples of web-borne smut.
2007 events: 
Weekly on Thursday evening @ 7:00 p.m.
Drinking Liberally (New Albany & Southern Indiana) meets in the Red Room each Thursday. Contact organizer Lacy Davis for details.
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March 9 - ???
Gravity Head 2007 rolls on
The ninth edition of our annual festival celebrating the brewing world’s biggest and best will kick off from its customary March starting time. This year's theme is Gravity Madness, celebrating the fact that at NABC, March isn't just about basketball any more.
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Friday & Saturday, May 18 & 19
2nd Annual Ohio River Valley Folk Festival
Along the Ohio River in Madison, Indiana. NABC poured beer in 2006, and will be doing so again along with friends from Upland and possibly Ram (Indianapolis).
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Friday, June 1
(Your name here)Fest begins ... Steve Fest 2007.
It's SteveFest 2007. Read more: Steve Hall is the winner ... and Steve Hall's winning "SteveFest 2007" essay.
To prep for 2008, read the rules for entering: Here are the contest rules for (Your name here)Fest in May, 2007.
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Saturday, June 2
2nd Annual Keg Liquors Fest of Ale
From Todd Antz at Keg Liquors: "It's back! We are just starting our early planning stages, but our successful Craft Beer Festival will be held on June 2nd this year. Already signed up for this year's festival are: New Albanian Brewing, Bluegrass Brewing Company, Upland Brewing Company, World Class Beverages, Cavalier Distributing, and many more to come. Stay tuned for more information on this event."
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Saturday (TBA), June (TBA)
Lambic by the Glass
A one-day sampling of Belgian lambic, with the Publican as host.
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Saturday, July 21 (changed from the 28th)
Indiana Microbrewers' Festival
Annual funfest in Indianapolis, and a required stop on the NABC summer brewery fest tour.
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Saturday, August 11
Awe inspiring, annual one-day brewery fete in Madison, Wisconsin.
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Saturday, August 25 (tentative)
With Hoptimus, you really can "talk to the animals."
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Friday, August 31
Sandkerwa NA begins
Our first all-German draft festival, inspired by an annual street party in Bamberg, Germany.
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Friday, October 19
Lupulin Land Harvest Hopcoming begins
Love and hoppiness, in all their myriad forms, as dispensed from all available taps.
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Friday, December 14
Saturnalia MMVII begins
Our fourth celebration of the winter solstice, with seasonal and holiday drafts.
Credits:
Thanks to Jim Bell for his photographic prowess, which we share with you from time to time, and which features prominently at the NABC web site.
Readers who aren’t as familiar with our business should go to http://www.newalbanian.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, who also writes The Potable Curmudgeon and NA Confidential blogs.
THE END.
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