Thursday, December 20, 2007

Publicanista! December 20, 2007.

In this edition of Publicanista!:



IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: HOLIDAY CLOSING SCHEDULE.

I. PUBLICAN'S CHOICE: SATURNALIA CONTINUES.

II. NABC BREWERY UPDATE: T-SHIRTS ARE HERE.

III. FROM THE HAND PULL: JAIPUR IPA UP TO BAT.

IV. ITINERARY FOR PACIFIC NORTHWEST BREWTOUR '08 RELEASED.

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

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

VII. NEW BOTTLED BEER LIST HAS BEEN RELEASED.

VIII. CALENDAR OF EVENTS, HOURS AND RELATED FACTS.

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IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: HOLIDAY CLOSING SCHEDULE.

NABC, Rich O's and Sportstime all will be closed on these upcoming days, in addition to the usual Sundays off:

Monday, December 24 - Christmas Eve
Tuesday, December 25 - Christmas Day

Monday, December 31 - New Year's Eve
Tuesday, January 1 - New Year's Day

I. PUBLICAN'S CHOICE: SATURNALIA CONTINUES.

(Note to Dave: The Harpoon still is in transit. To get you through, I've ordered two kegs of Rogue Chocolate Stout, to be tapped ASAP)

Our annual draft festival of Christmas beers, winter seasonals and choices that strike me as festive will proceed throughout the month of December, and probably well beyond. With Gravity Head slated for February 29, “permanent festival” might be the best way to describe matters.

View the official Saturnalia MMVII program here (pdf). There'll be updates posted here and at my Potable Curmudgeon blog.

Based on an informal poll of the keg weights, I'd say that several of the Saturnalia beers currently tapped are poised to pop soon, so there should be some play by week's end.

Of the ones already gone, some will return later owing to multiple keg allotments.

16 currently tapped ...

BELGIUM
Biere de Miel (Dupont)
De Ranke Pere Noel
Dupont Avec les Bons Voeux
N ’Ice Chouffe

GERMANY
Schlenkerla Rauchbier Marzen

JAPAN
Hitachino Nest Espresso Stout

UNITED STATES
Anchor Christmas Ale (“Merry Christmas & Happy New Year”)
BBC Hell for Certain
Brooklyn Brewery Black Chocolate Stout
Clipper City “Heavy Seas” Winter Storm
Great Divide Hibernation Ale
Great Divide Yeti Imperial Stout
NABC Bonfire of the Valkyries
NABC Naughty Claus
Schlafly Pumpkin Ale
Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale

Still to come:

BELGIUM
De Dolle Stille Nacht
De Glazen Toren Canaster Winter Scotch
De Glazen Toren Cuvee Angelique
Delirium Noel
Kasteel Rouge

DENMARK
WinterCoat Yule Ale
WinterCoat Vildmose

GERMANY
Uerige Sticke (gravity pour keg)

ITALY
Moretti Birra La Rossa

JAPAN
Hitachino Nest XH (aged in Shochu distilled sake casks)

UNITED STATES
Barley Island Bourbon Barrel-Aged Oatmeal Stout
Bell’s Java Stout
Bell’s Winter White
Boulder Never Summer Ale
Breckenridge Christmas Ale
Dark Horse Tres Blueberry Stout
Harpoon Winter Warmer
Oaken Barrel Epiphany
Ommegang Chocolate Indulgence Stout
Pyramid Snow Cap
Rogue Chocolate Stout
Rogue JLS Santa’s Private Reserve
Samuel Adams Winter Lager
Schlafly Christmas Ale
Three Floyds Alpha Klaus Xmas Porter
Upland Winter Warmer

Depleted ... but some of these will be reappearing later:

BELGIUM
Gouden Carolus Noel
La Rulles Cuvee Meilleurs Voeux

ENGLAND
Young's Winter Warmer (vintage 2006)

GERMANY
Aventinus Weizen Doppelbock

UNITED STATES
Clipper City “Heavy Seas” Hang Ten Weizen Doppelbock
Jolly Pumpkin Noel de Calabaza (cask-conditioned firkin)
Rogue HazelNut Brown Nectar

II. NABC BREWERY UPDATE: T-SHIRTS ARE HERE.

NABC Hoptimus, “These Machines Kill Fascists” and Sportstime 20th Anniversary tees are all in stock, along with (for the first time) brewery (logo + “I’m for It”) shirts in longsleeve. NABC’s t-shirts are okay as stocking stuffers, but work even better when you just wear the damn things.

III. FROM THE HAND PULL: JAIPUR IPA UP TO BAT.

Cooler weather means we’re back in cask-conditioned “real ale” season. Here are the next selections for dispensing by the hand pump:

(NOW) Thornbridge Hall Jaipur IPA … U.K.; 5.9% abv.
Thornbridge Hall St. Petersburg Imperial Stout … U.K.; 7.7% abv.

For more information on cask-conditioned ale:

Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA)

Warm, Flat and Boring -- the Truth About Cask Ale, from Rate Beer.

IV. ITINERARY FOR PACIFIC NORTHWEST BREWTOUR '08 RELEASED.

The probably daily regimen can be perused here: Pacific Northwest Brew Tour, May 6 – 14, 2008. Next we'll be pricing the journey. If you're interested and haven't yet contacted me, please do so and you'll be placed on the mailing list.

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

Saturnalia MMVII official program and new bottled beer list.

Private beer tastings the subject of C-J article.

VI. 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.

Bonfire of the Valkyries ... Smoked black lager; Saturnalia listed.

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

ConeSmoker ... Elegant Franconian smoked malt, an above average “noble” German hops presence and warm fermentation -- new twists on an old style.

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?

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.

Naughty Claus ... Spiced ale for Christmas (see above); Saturnalia listed.

Phoenix Kentucky Komon ... Retro style indigenous to Louisville; dark, smooth with a touch or roast, and sour.

Guests from near and far (market pricing).

ON TAP NOW: Everyday staples. Note that Alpha King will now often be rotating with Bell’s Two Hearted Ale . Why? Go here.

Arrogant Bastard

Bell’s Two Hearted Ale

Guinness Stout

Lindemans Framboise (wholesaler is out-of-stock at the present time)

Pilsner Urquell

Sierra Nevada Pale Ale

Smithwick’s Irish Ale

Spaten Premium Lager

Sprecher Root Beer (non-alcoholic)

Upland Wheat

ON TAP NOW: Rotating selections (limited engagement).

See Saturnalia LIST, above.

In the bullpen (ready for duty when called upon to serve).

Partials will return, but not for a while. Through December, it's all about Saturnalia.

VII. NEW BOTTLED BEER LIST HAS BEEN RELEASED.

The new bottled beer list will be effective on Friday, December 7. The vintage collection has been folded into the listings by country, and separate listings have been added for Belgian Lambics and French Bieres de Garde. This will be the last update in the current format. In early February, I hope to inaugurate a new bottled beer list with far more information than the current listing. Read and print the list here: NABC's bottled beer menu .pdf

VIII. 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, December 7

Saturnalia MMVII begins

Our fourth celebration of the winter solstice, with seasonal and holiday drafts. Note the date change; it has been moved forward one week.

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Thursday, December 27

Pants Down Potluck Port Circle

This year's gathering of the Pants Down Potluck Port Circle is Thursday, December 27.

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Friday, February 29, 2008

Leap Year Gravity Head Number Ten

'Nuff said for now. The tenth anniversary of Gravity Head is slated to begin on the 29th of February, so make designated driver and bunking arrangements now.

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Credits:

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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