American Craft Beer The Best Craft Beer, Breweries, Bars, Brewpubs, Beer Stores, And Restaurants Serving Serious Beer.
Yikes it’s December already…and clearly nothing is slowing down anytime soon. But no worries – Rumor Mill is always on the case, keeping you plugged in to all the craft beer news that matters. Plus we’ve an all-important update on what we’ve been drinking lately and you absolutely don’t want to miss that.
Obamacare Mandate Threatens Small Brewers (Everywhere, USA) – A new FDA rule imposed as an unfortunate byproduct of President Obama’s health care legislation, will limit many small breweries ability to sell their beers at national restaurant chains like Applebee’s or TGI Friday’s. As of next December, these kinds of chains will be charged with providing full nutritional information for all beers on tap. Big brewers will, of course, have the time and economic resources to weather this mandate. But lab work which could “costs more than $600 per brew and takes weeks,” according to the New York Post, will prove prohibitively costly and time consuming for most small craft breweries. And, as a result, limit their access to consumers who frequent these popular chains.
Second Self Upgrades (Atlanta, GA) – Second Self Beer Company will be expanding its production output and facilities, in 2016. Plans include a nifty new tasting room able to accommodate up to 300 guests that will triple the size of the brewery’s current space that and will be designed by an award-winning architecture and design firm, Square Feet Studio.
Words To Drink By (Washington, DC) – “Everybody has to believe in something…..I believe I’ll have another drink.”
– W.C. Fields – Actor
Sierra Nevada Sells Out Cult-Like Club! (Chico, CA) – Sierra Nevada recently offered membership to a new club they call the Alpha Hops Society that will debut in 2016. Unfortunately, for many of you, it sold out immediately. Those who were lucky enough to get in will have access to the brewery’s most coveted beers, small-batch experimental creations and extremely limited barrel-aged bottles.
Here’s what they’ll get (and most of you won’t)
12 big bottles of extremely limited barrel-aged beers
Alpha Hop-only access to quarterly cellar tours, barrel tastings, Pilot brewery samplings, and other beer-focused events (airfare to Chico is not included)
A first taste of new beers from Sierra Nevada
Early access and invites to Sierra Nevada events and festivals so they can deplete all the good stuff
Access to vintage and other exclusive beers
AHS t-shirt (hopefully they’ve plenty of XXXX-Large)
Monthly newsletter detailing the Alpha Hop beers and other small-batch events at Sierra Nevada (but they’ll need to be able to read above a 5th grade level)
AHS membership card (They get their own membership card? Now we’re totally bummed)
What We’ve Been Drinking Lately (Portland, ME) – We’d like to thank all the breweries who ship us beer from time to time. It’s always great to sample the brews that we write about and helps to give us a better feel for what’s happening out there. And last night we hit up a bomber of something special fromLeft Hand Brewing that combines two of our favorite things – coffee and serious beer – and it was nice. Left Hand Bittersweet Imperial Coffee Milk Stout is a 9.5% shot of milky sweet stout melded with Colorado’s Allegro Coffee Mocha Java Blend.
