I'm a huge Vikings fan, as are my brother and my cousins, so we decided to road trip down to Mankato, Minnesota, to stay with relatives and watch the opening weekend of Vikings training camp at Minnesota State University.

Hey it's Wednesday and that means it's Rumor Mill Time....SweetWater Brewing is upping the ante on its commitment to both science and style in a big way. We'll get into that and on to other things that are breaking right now in the world of craft beer. Plus we've an all-important update on what we've been drinking lately.

We don't sleep so you can....THIS WEEK'S RUMOR MILL IS ON!

Washington State's American Brewing Company went public last week - a surprise move of no small consequence that sent ripples throughout the Pacific Northwest's craft beer community. In an additional act of recklessness, American Brewing's CEO Neil Fallon agreed to sit down with us at ACB and give us the "inside-skinny" on what led up to his decision and what this all means to his company going forward.

Beer commercials usually show big men, manly men, doing manly things: "You've just killed a small animal. It's time for a light beer." Why not have a realistic beer commercial, with a realistic thing about beer, where someone goes, "It's five o'clock in the morning. You've just pissed on a dumpster. It's Miller time."

                                                                                                                                           -- Robin Williams (1951-2014)

So many beers, So little time... Founders just brewed up something that they haven't dared to approach in almost 12 years. We've that story for you plus other cool new releases from Breckenridge and Upright Brewing that you absolutely need to know about! 

The busy days of mass confusion, distribution headaches, and dusty chalkboards may soon become a thing of the past as today's slingers of artisan pints and savvy craft brewers are being saved by digital Point of Sale mechanisms that are wowing not just the publican but also the public at large. One of the only (if not THE only) companies that links all aspects of the taproom experience, fusing the backroom, POS, menu, and social media applications, is a Portland-based firm called DigitalPour.

We blame the industry for this... It used to be that when we wrapped up our Weekend Picks on Friday, we could coast through the weekend. There was little need to check in for updates -things were pretty much done. But clearly all that's changed.

So here's some of what's happened in the world of craft beer while you were off enjoying yourselves.

We knew that people would be into celebrating yesterday's IPA Day - but we don't think that anyone saw this coming... Reports started surfacing just after midnight last night that the response to 2014's IPA Day had been massive and that the nation's IPA supply lines, at least for now, had been decimated!

Hey we get it. You're busy and we wouldn't want your boss finding out that you've spent your entire day with us when you were supposed to be working. So as part of our ongoing commitment to bringing you the most unique and entertaining craft beer and lifestyle coverage on the face of the planet - and to keep you plugged in to some of the things that you might have missed - we are introducing a new regular feature.

So welcome to ACB's Friday Wrap-Up - This Week's Good, Bad, & Ugly

Hey it's Friday...Work's been brutal this week so you're ready to shut down and have some fun. Well good, because we're all about it and we've got all kinds of awesome ideas for you. From the nation's coolest beer festivals to movies, music, and cutting-edge TV - we've got your back big-time.

So welcome to our awesome Weekend Picks...