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SPECIAL NOTE: WE'LL BE CLOSED ON MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, IN CELEBRATION OF LABOR DAY. REGULAR HOURS RESUME ON TUESDAY.
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I. PUBLICAN'S CHOICE: A MODEST VERSION OF "SANDKERWA NA," AN EXAMINATION OF NORTHERN BAVARIAN BREWING, BEGINS ON FRIDAY, AUGUST 31.
II. RECENT NEWS AND ARTICLES AT THE POTABLE CURMUDGEON’S BEER BLOG.
III. DRAFT BEERS: OUR LIQUID, DAILY BREAD, ON TAP AT RICH O’S AND SPORTSTIME.
IV. NEW BOTTLED LIST IS ON THE STREET.
V. CALENDAR OF EVENTS, HOURS AND RELATED FACTS.
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I. PUBLICAN'S CHOICE: A MODEST VERSION OF "SANDKERWA NA," AN EXAMINATION OF NORTHERN BAVARIAN BREWING, BEGINS ON FRIDAY, AUGUST 31.
Bamberg, a beautiful city of 70,000 people located in the countryside of the northern German region known as Franconia, has long been recognized as the epicenter of traditional German brewing and beer culture. Ten breweries operate within the city limits, and as many as 150 others are to be found within the outward radius of a good day’s bicycle ride on immaculately marked and maintained bike routes. The majority of Franconia’s 300 breweries are family owned and operated.
For a half-century, SANDKERWA (SAND-kehr-wa) has been Bamberg’s end-of-summer street festival, one that originated as a church-related commemoration in the historic city’s oldest central district. For six days each year in late August, the Altstadt’s narrow lanes are filled with food, beer and people in a hearty celebration that brings Munich’s better known Oktoberfest to mind, but exists on a less crowded, decentralized and more enjoyable human scale.
Sandkerwa is an idea worth emulating, and Bamberg a state of mind worth honoring, so given that I’ve been looking for a reason to stage a German-themed draft beer fest, prepare for the inaugural edition of Sandkerwa NA, which kicks off at Rich O’s and Sportstime on Friday, August 31.
There'll be fourteen beers from Bamberg and environs on tap at the same time, combining to represent as many traditional Franconian styles of beer as possible (with a few Greater Bavarian and non-regional ringers tapped to provide representative examples of unobtainable styles).
Kindly note that contrary to what you may have heard, not all of these delectable beers are smoked!
In Bamberg itself, only the renowned Schlenkerla and the tiny Spezial include Rauchbier in their daily range, as do a few breweries outside Bamberg, but by no means are smoked beers the norm in Franconia at large. Here are the beers that I’m hoping will be on hand, beginning with the core selection from Bamberg:
Aecht Schlenkerla Helles
Aecht Schlenkerla Marzen
Aecht Schlenkerla Urbock
Aecht Schlenkerla Weizen
Mahr's Hell
Mahr's Pilsner
Mahr's der Weisse Bock
Spezial Rauchbier
Also, originating reasonably near Bamberg:
Bayerischer Bahnhof Gose (Leipzig)
Bayerischer Bahnhof Heizer Schwarzbier (Leipzig)
Kapuziner Weissbier (Kulmbach)
Klosterbrauerei Ettal Dunkel (Ettal)
Kulmbacher Eisbock (Kulmbach)
Schneider Wiesen Edel Weiss (Kelheim)
And, of course, Pilsner Urquell (Plzen, Czech Republic) and Spaten Premium Lager (Munich) will both be on tap during Sandkerwa NA.
Regrettably, and as so often occurs, both Mahr's Ungespundet Lager (Bamberg) and St. Georgenbrau Kellerbier (Buttenheim) are unavailable at this time. This is particularly frustrating given that these are the only two examples of the style even possible to acquire, but I'll persist, and maybe they'll be available later in the fall. There's always next year.
Finally, we'll also be debuting a New Albanian Brewing Company beer in honor of the occasion: Happy Helmut, named for a merry trinket salesman with whom I once drank numerous half-liters of Spezial in Bamberg. There's a percentage of smoked malt from Bamberg's Weyermann malting house, and some rye in the grist. California Common yeast is used, and Tony's working on the artwork. Diring tastings last week, Happy Helmut was (happily) revealed to be soft and suitably Franconian, with the smokiness and rye qualities both muted and a noble hop firmness. At less than 5% abv, it's a fine quaffer.
As always is the case with our draft extravaganzas, the Sandkerwa NA beers will continue pouring until they are depleted. By mid-September, a new wave of Oktoberfest brands from Germany and American craft breweries will begin flowing, and after New Albany’s annual Harvest Homecoming has concluded, we’ll commence Lupulin Land, NABC’s annual hop festival, on October 19.
A final note: It is my aim to launch Sandkerwa NA for the sake of the classic beer alone, and without the capability of providing Bamberg-style cuisine as a delicious match. The summer proved to be too busy to do more than draw up a future outline and order kegs, and yet I believe that starting small, while expedient, is also the correct approach. In 2008, it is my hope to add a full-blown German meal to the program, and perhaps music as well.
I’ve calculated the pricing across the board rather than by individual brand, so nine of the fourteen imported German beers slated for Sandkerwa will be sold in our usual Imperial pint glasses, but at the ½ liter price (a savings of about 10%) – and the price will be the same for all nine. The four wheat ales will be a bit less expensive and will be served when possible in wheat ale glasses. The Kulmbacher Eisbock will be priced by the 10-ounce pour.
There’ll be a simple one-page, two-sided program. No frills ... this year. Just wait 'til next year.
In 2007, savor the wonderful beers, and in 2008, we’ll broaden the experience.
II. RECENT NEWS AND ARTICLES AT THE POTABLE CURMUDGEON’S BEER BLOG.
I’m batting somewhere under .250 as Sandkerwa NA approaches on Friday, August 31.
Talking to an animal at Brew at the Zoo.
A-B: From pet shampoo to skin care, and no good between.
Brew at the Zoo wrap-up for 2007: Inclement weather early, sticky beer drinking late.
Why invest in Iron City?
UPDATE: Peak Summit beer choices will include BBC.
Good news, musicians: Peak Summit is this weekend at New Albany's Rustic Frog, and you get to have NABC.
Update: Beer hunting by motor coach in the Pacific Northwest.
III. DRAFT BEERS: OUR LIQUID, DAILY BREAD, ON TAP AT RICH O’S AND SPORTSTIME.
Our NABC beers.
NABC began brewing in 2002, and we’re proud to be New Albany’s first active brewery since 1935. From very deep within the confines of NABC’s garage brewery, Jesse Williams and Jared Williamson conjure 8-barrel batches of regulars, old favorites and new formulations.
Always check the blackboards to see what’s on tap. For more information about NABC beers, go here.
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 dedicated to the workers at the Caesars Indiana riverboat casino in nearby Harrison County.
Elector ... Making Democracy pointless since 2002; English malt, American hops. 7.2% abv. Double Red?
Happy Helmut ... Homage to eclectic Franconian brewing traditions, light bodied and quaffable, with a hint of smoke and rye.
Hoptimus ... Massive and assertive. Stern. Double IPA. Silver medal winner at the 2007 St. Louis Microfest.
Mt. Lee ... California Common ("Steam"), named for the Hollywood mountainside with the famous sign. First brewed in 2006. It has been lightened in gravity and a.b.v. by roughly 10% for the current first summer of 2007 batch.
St. Radegund ... English-style ESB, brewed as Beak's Best in its original incarnation in 2002, then reformulated as St. Radegund in 2005.
Guests from near and far (market pricing).
ON TAP NOW: Everyday staples.
(Alpha King will now often be rotating with Bell’s Two Hearted Ale . Why? Go here)
Bell’s Two Hearted Ale (Alpha King to follow)
Sprecher Root Beer (non-alcoholic)
ON TAP NOW: Rotating selections (limited engagement).
(Listings valid for Thursday, August 30. Sandkerwa NA beers will displace all rotating guests except two on August 31)
Browning's Brewery She-Devil India Pale Ale
Stone Smoked Porter
In the bullpen (ready for duty when called upon to serve).
Alpha King (three kegs)
Ommegang Hennepin
Rogue "John's Locker Stock" Anniversary Ale - Brewer 2007 (redux)
Rogue "John's Locker Stock" Glen Ale 2007 (redux)
Stone Old Guardian Barley Wine
Stone Ruination IPA
Stone Imperial Russian Stout
Stone 07.07.07 Vertical Epic Ale.
IV. NEW BOTTLED LIST IS ON THE STREET.
The new, updated bottled beer list has been published and can be viewed here. Note the expanded Belgian and French sections.
V. 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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Friday, August 31
Sandkerwa NA begins
Our first all-German draft festival, inspired by an annual street party in Bamberg, Germany. Read more here: Sandkerwa NA, an homage to Bamberg’s beers, begins Friday, August 31.
We'll be debuting a New Albanian Brewing Company beer in honor of the occasion: Happy Helmut, named for a merry trinket salesman with whom I once drank numerous half-liters of Spezial in Bamberg. There's a percentage of smoked malt from Bamberg's Weyermann malting house, and some rye in the grist. California Common yeast is used, and Tony's working on the artwork.
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Grassroots Festival on the patio at Stratto's in Clarksville.
Click here for details.
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Thursday, October 11 through Sunday, October 14
Harvest Homecoming
New Albany's annual celebration, now featuring three downtown restaurants/pubs serving NABC beer.
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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.
