1. Why do so many brewers have beards?
2. If beer didn't produce a high you enjoyed - would you drink it?
3. Does an excellent distribution team trump the quality of the beer -or vice versa?

So many beers, so little time...Newbies is your essential map to the "best of the best" and the hottest new craft beers rolling out each week. From a rock-and-roll Stone Brewing collaboration to the latest release in the Bridgeport Hop Czar Series, we've all kinds of beers that you'll want to chase down.

So welcome to another edition of Newbies -Your ultimate guide to great new craft beers!

Hey even though we act like it, we admit, we don't know everything. And one thing that's cool to know more about is the kind of beer that you're drinking. Each beer style has a back-story - a reason that they came about - and we'll be bringing you what we know, in the first of this ongoing series.

So (drum roll please...) on to "What the Hell Is a Kölsch?" 

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.

Hey it's Friday! So you might think you know what you're doing this weekend, though you might have to change your plans, since we've got some great ideas on how to make it even better. From the nation's coolest beer festivals to movies, music, and cutting-edge TV - we've got your back. We've also found a Weekend Beer Pick for you too, because we know you'll be drinking.

Was someone trying to tell us something?

We've reviewed books before at American Craft Beer.com and must have done something right, because on occasion publishers will advance us copies of books on beer to review. We recently received the 2nd edition of Beer For Dummies by Marty Nachel with Steve Ettlinger, and we thoroughly enjoyed it.

Hey, we may not be professionals, but we know you don't have the time or energy to hunt down the newest big game beers on the market. So we have our experts trolling the interwebs, holding an ear to the rail, and keeping a wet finger in the wind to catch drift of the best new beers blowing into stores as we speak. From Ommegang's Third Game of Thrones release to Breckenridge's Denver Comic Con Beer, we've found all sorts of beers you'll want to chase down.

So welcome to another edition of Newbies -Your ultimate guide to great new craft beers!

When Thor Cheston got into the restaurant business back in 2003, he did so with the hope that he would one day open his own brewery and restaurant. This past December, he saw this intention come to fruition in the form of the Right Proper Brewing Company, located right next door to the Howard Theatre in the historic Shaw neighborhood of Washington, DC.

Much like its obsessively sought-after namesake, this year's Dark Lord Day (DLD) deftly demonstrated that the festival is continually improving with age. Just when you think that there's nothing Three Floyds can do to make their annual event more enjoyable, they go and blow your expectations to unidentifiable bits. And they accomplish this while attendance numbers grow exponentially each year (8,000+ lucky souls entered the gates this year).

Hey it's Wednesday and it's Rumor Mill time... American troops and their families get a helping hand from a Saint. A big baby Buddha is turning 1 and the AHA 2014 Conference Beer is named. We also have some much needed good news for GWAR fans!

So fasten your seat belts everybody... THIS WEEK'S RUMOR MILL IS ON!