Oregon's Deschutes now available in Texas

Press release I just received:



Bend Based Deschutes Brewery Expands Into the Texas Market

(March 24, 2008 – Bend, OR) – Deschutes Brewery has recently announced plans to expand its distribution and sales into Texas, the thirteenth state to offer Deschutes brews. Deschutes Brewery’s flagship beers, Mirror Pond Pale Ale and Black Butte Porter, will be available on draft at select establishments in Austin beginning Monday, March 24th; beer will be available in the Dallas area as of May 1st.

Black Butte Porter, the number one selling craft porter in the country, was first brewed in 1988 and has become Deschutes Brewery’s flagship label. With the rich and distinctive flavor of chocolate and crystal malts, this porter has developed a loyal and passionate following. Deschutes Brewery’s other flagship beer, Mirror Pond Pale Ale, became a year-round offering in 1996 and uses generous quantities of Cascade hops, offering a lush floral aroma with a balanced malt body.

Look for Black Butte Porter and Mirror Pond Pale Ale on tap at select Austin establishments including: Billy's, Trudy's on 30th, Crown and Anchor, Opal Divines on 6th, Little Woodrow's on 6th and Draught Horse. For more information about Deschutes Brewery and their award winning beers, please visit www.deschutesbrewery.com.

About Deschutes Brewery:
Deschutes Brewery was founded in 1988 by Gary Fish as the Deschutes Brewery and Public House. Over the years, Deschutes has maintained its commitment to innovation and exceptional quality with flagship beers such as Mirror Pond Pale Ale and Black Butte Porter, as well as new additions like The Abyss and Hop Trip. This year, Deschutes Brewery celebrates their 20th Anniversary, along with the opening of their new Portland Brewery and Public House.

Black Star Co-op Event Tonight

Sadly, I won't be there. Y'all enjoy it for me:

Dear Member-Owners & Friends,

Don't forget that our March Beer Social will take place tomorrow night, Saturday 3/22, from 7-10 PM at Kenny Dorham's Backyard (1106 E 11th St).  The weather should be clear and cool, so bring a chair and enjoy our return to outdoor Beer Socials with live music by The Lennings.

We've received a challenge from a current member-owner for 50 new  people to join the Co-op before March 31, and he will generously match each new membership with a $20 donation.  With your help we can answer this challenge, and have set a goal of 25 new member-owners (half the challenge!) at just the Beer Social. If you can't make it to the Beer Social, please become a member-owner on our website before the 31st:

http://www.blackstar.coop/become-a-member

What: March Beer Social
Where: Kenny Dorham's Backyard, 1106 E 11th St
When: Saturday, March 22nd, 7-10PM
What to bring: Chairs, Friends, and Thirst
More information: http://www.blackstar.coop/events/march-beer-social
facebook: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=9856317414
do512: http://do512.com/event/2008/03/22/black-star-co-op-beer-social-featuring-the-lennings

Sincerely,

Black Star Co-op

My story on the hop shortage

I had a feature story in today's Austin Chronicle on the global hop shortage. I hope you enjoy it. You should also check out Wes Marshall's roundup of Austin brewpubs, also in today's issue.

(Please note: that photograph is copyrighted to The Austin Chronicle and photographer John Anderson. Please do not use it without obtaining John's permission.)

New Texas Beer Blog

In fact, that is literally what it is called: Texas Beer. It offers up "News about Beers, Brewers and Brewing in the Lone Star State." It's being published by a freelance writer living in Fort Worth. Go check it out.

Bourbon Sucks

So last night I planned on hanging out most of the night, if not all, at Bourbon Rocks on Sixth Street for my SXSW evening. But we got over there to hear Lil' Cap'n Travis and went up to what appeared to be a well-stocked bar – just about every hard liquor you could want – but then I was horrified to see their beer selection (and I use the term "selection" lightly). Their entire beer list was: Miller Lite, Bud Light, Miller High Life, or Heineken Light. Oh, excuse me … they also had Coors Light out back.

As soon as LCT was done, I was outta there! Bret accused me of being a whiny little pussy – and he's right, I was. And I don't care, because you know what? During SXSW – and really, just about any night in Austin – there are about five bazillion nightclubs where I can get great music and great beer, so I why should I settle for only half of the equation? C'mon, Bourbon Rocks – if you're going to run a bar in this town you at least need to throw me a bone with some Shiner Bock, at a minimum.

We moved a block away over to Orchid (on Seventh between Neches and Trinity) and caught a fantastic unofficial showcase with some awesome bands (Bastard Sons of Johnny Cash, Hello Stranger, an Oslo band called Big Bang, and a southern rock guy named Leroy Powell; see the poster) and awesome beer (Fireman's Four, Live Oak Big Bark, and Guinness). Except I think we were actually buying our beer from the club next door named Black & Tan. The clubs are all connected; they must either have the same owners or some sort of arrangement, because they appear to all be one place.

I asked Bret about halfway through if he wanted to leave and go catch Geno Delafose – which would have been great – but he imparted some wisdom upon me, borrowed from the poker world: "I'm staying here. I never leave a table when it's hot." He was right. It all kicked ass.

Oh, and as always: God bless the nice folks at Capital Metro for driving my drunk butt home. Them are some good people. Don't drink and drive kids, leave the driving to the sober professionals. If you're partying downtown late at night, the Night Owl routes are the best thing ever.

Bad Bartender! BAD!

You know, I normally have a policy of not bitching at bartenders. They get too much grief as it is. After all, they have to deal with drunks all day (and night). Who the hell deserves that?

But sometimes bartenders give really crappy service, and they deserve to be called on it.

So this afternoon, I'm enjoying the South by Southwest festivities, and after quite a few beers, I decide I better start pacing myself. So I head into Opal Divine's and ask for a water. And the bartender says, "Sorry, all we have is bottled water." Fine, I say, let me have it. I hand over $2 and take my bottle. And then I walk into the next room, and RIGHT THERE is an Igloo water cooler FULL OF WATER with several plastic cups sitting right there. So I indignantly went back to the bartender and said, "You have drinking water RIGHT THERE." And her reply was, "Well, yes, but all we have at the bar is bottled water."

So tell me: HOW FUCKING HARD WOULD HAVE IT BEEN FOR YOU TO TELL ME THAT THERE WAS SOME FREE WATER LESS THAN 20 FEET FROM WHERE WE'RE STANDING? You cost me money, and made me do something bad for the environment, to boot.

So, Ms. Bartender, I hope you're proud of that $2 you raked in for your business (which brought you no tip). It cost you the $15 or so (plus tip) that I probably would have spent on dinner and a beer, but I didn't, because I was so torqued off at you that I just stomped out. Good going. You cost your business $13 or so, plus a hell of a lot of customer loyalty from me.

And don't even get me started on the assholes with Central Parking Corporation who ripped me out of $5 because their signs are completely deceptive. Don't park in their lots downtown. The signs that say five bucks will buy you parking until 6am is a LIE. I'm definitely taking the bus tomorrow.

Great Beers in Philly

If you live out near Philadelphia, a friend of mine helps put on the event below as an annual fundraiser for the American Red Cross. Getting tipsy for a good cause is a win-win, so go do it. (If you can't read it, click on the invitation for a larger version.)