Ameri-CAN Canned Beer Festival 2014, is in the books!

This past weekend, marked the 4th Annual Ameri-can Canned Beer Festival, held in Scottsdale. This

year, some 80 breweries were pouring 250 different beers. This year, it was a hot one, but that didn't seem to dampen the spirits of any of the festival attendees.

 

As is always the case, this event was just awesome! This remains my favorite beer festival in Arizona. I've said it before, but I will say it again, this festival has everything that I love about beer, in one awesome event. Great weather (104 isn't that bad for Arizona), great beer, knowledgeable folks pouring the beer, great people enjoying the beer, live music, great food, reasonable lines to get beer (no long waits), cigars, lots of cleavage (one advantage to the 104 degree temps!), shade trees, green grass, smells, sounds, and sites that are just wonderful. Here, take a look at some of the sites the Ameri-can Canned Beer festival had to offer this year.....

 

 

 

Some of the stand out brews I had that day (but not all of them), as far as tasting went are this....

 

Come Hell or High Watermelon, 21st Amendment Brewing Company, San Francisco, CA

EOS Hefeweizen, Nebraska Brewing Company, Papillion, NE

Brown Ale, Upslope Brewing Company, Boulder, CO

Snake River Pale Ale, Snake River Brewing Com., Jackson, WY

El Hefe Speaks, DC Brau Brewing Com, Washington, DC

 

 And, of coarse, I had to have a taste of my old favorite, Bells Oberon. Wouldn't be a summer beer festival without an Oberon if you ask me!

 

Again, if you didn't make it this year, make a note to  yourself, and make sure you take this festival in next year. Its a great time. Not a pinky up, snob fest, and not a drunken frat party either. This is a perfect festival for someone that might be new to craft beer, just a casual beer fan, or even the most hard core beer geek, this festival has something for everyone.

 

My hat is off to SanTan Brewing Company to putting on such a great event yet again, and special thanks to Landon, Jen and all the fine folks at HDE Agency for putting this together. You guys really do know how to throw an AWESOME beer festival. Thanks for all you've done!

 As soon as I get a date for next years festival, trust me, I will let you know!! I am already looking forward to it!

 

Until next time

Bottoms up my friends!

 

The Beer Czar

The Offical list of beers for tomorrows AmeriCAN Canned Beer Festival!

OK folks, tomorrow is the big day, the 4th Annual AmeriCAN Canned Beer Festival! And look what I just got, the official list of brewers attending, and the beers they will be pouring! 80 local brews will help make up over 250 beers for you to  sample!

If you need further info on the event, click the link here.....

New Breweries
Alaskan Brewing

• Alaskan Amber
• Alaskan Freeride APA

Angry Orchard

• Crisp Apple
• Ginger

Armadillo Ale Works

• Greenbelt Farmhouse Ale

Australian

• Pale Ale
• Pilsner

Avery

• Ellie’s Brown Ale
• White Rascal
• Joe’s Pilsner
• IPA

Ballast Point

• Sculpin IPA
• Longfin Lager
• Big Eye IPA

Barrio

• Blonde
• Rojo
• Blanco

Bell’s

• Oberon Ale
• Two Hearted Ale

Black Market

• Hefeweizen
• Aftermath Pale Ale
• Rye IPA

Black Tooth

• Bomber Mountain Amber
• Saddle Bronc Brown
• Indian Paintbrush Ale
• Wagon Box Wheat

Cedar Creek

• Lawn Ranger
• Scruffy’s
• Dankosaurus

Deep Ellum

• IPA
• Pale Ale
• Double Brown Stout
• Dreamcrusher
• Dallas Blonde

Destihl

• Abbey’s Single
• Hoperation Overload

Dog Tag

• Lager
• IPA

Epic

• Escape to Colorado IPA
• Hop Syndrome Pils Lager

Founders

• All Day IPA

Griffin Claw

• Norm’s Raggedy Ass IPA
• El Rojo Red Ale
• Grind Line Pale Ale
• Grand Trunk Bohemian Pilsner

Guinness

• Stout
• Black Lager
• Red Stripe

Hangar 24

• Orange Wheat
• Helles Lager

Hops & Grains

• Pale Dog
• ALT-eration
• The One They Call Zoe
• Greenhouse IPS

Johnny Appleseed Cider

• Hard Apple Cider

Mike Hess

• Grazias
• Habitus
• Claritas
• Jucundus
• Solis IPA

Nebraska

• Cardinal Pale Ale
• IPA
• EOS Hefeweizen
• Brunette Nut Brown Ale

Redstone Meadery

• Nectar of the Hops
• Sunshine Black Raspberry

Rogue

• American Amber

Twisted Tea

• Original
• Lemonade

Uncharted Cider

• Smith & Forge Hard Cider

Upslope

• Belgian Style Pale Ale

Utah Brewers Cooperative

• Wasatch Apricot Wheat
• Squatters Hop Rising
• Squatters Full Suspension Pale Ale
• Wasatch Ghostrider IPA

Wild Cider

• Apple
• Pineapple
• Berry

Returning Breweries
21st Amendment

• Brew Free! Or Die
• Back in Black
• Bitter American
• Hell or High Watermelon
• Sneak Attack Saison
• Monk’s Blood

Abita

• Amber
• Purple Haze
• Jockoma IPA

Anderson Valley

• Hop Ottin’ IPA
• Boont Amber Ale
• Summer Solstice

Austin Beerworks

• Black Thunder
• Fire Eagle
• Peacemaker
• Pearl Snap
• Heavy Machinery Half IPA
• Heavy Machinery Double IPA

Big Sky

• Moose Drool
• Summer Honey
• Scape Goat
• Trout Slayer
• IPA

Blue Moon

• Belgian White
• Summer Honey Wheat
• Agave Blonde Ale

Bohemian

• 1842 Czech Pilsner
• Viennese Amber Lager
• Cherny Bock

Boulder Beer

• Hazed & Infused

Breckenridge

• Lucky U IPA
• SummerBright Ale
• Avalanche
• Agave Wheat

DC Brau

• Public Pale Ale
• Corruption India Ale
• On the Wings of Armageddon
• Penn Quarter Porter
• El Hefe Speaks
• The Tradition

Fort George

• 1811 Lager
• Quick Wit
• Suicide Squeeze
• Vortex IPA

Four Peaks

• Hop Knot
• Kilt Lifter
• Sunbru
• Peach Ale
• 8^th Street Ale

GoodLife

• Descender IPA
• Sweet As Pacific Ale

Goose Island

• 312 Urban Wheat
• 312 Urban Pale Ale

Grand Canyon

• White Water Wheat
• American Pilsner
• Black Iron IPA
• Sunset Amber Ale

Joseph James

• Ho Box Imperial India Pale Ale
• American Lager
• Fox Tail Gluten Free Pale Ale

Kona

• Longboard Lager

Leinenkugel

• Summer Shandy
• Orange Shandy
• Lemon Berry Shandy

Lumberyard

• IPA
• Red Ale
• Knotty Pine Pale Ale

Marble

• Pilsner
• IPA

Maui

• Bikini Blonde Lager
• Big Swell IPA
• Mana Wheat
• CocoNut PorTer
• Lahaina Town Brown

Mudshark

• Full Moon Belgian White Ale
• Desert Magic IPA
• Up River Light

New Belgium

• Fat Tire
• Ranger
• Snapshot
• Shift

NOLA

• Blonde Ale
• Brown Ale
• Hopitoulas
• Mechahopzilla
• Irish Channel Stout

Oskar Blues

• Dale’s Pale Ale
• Mama’s Little Yella Pils
• Old Chub Scotch Ale
• Deviant Dale’s IPA
• G’Knight Imperial Red IPA
• Gubna Imperial IPA

Prescott

• Ponderosa IPA
• Liquid Amber Ale

Redhook

• Longhammer IPA

Sam Adams

• Boston Lager
• Summer Ale

Santa Fe

• Happy Camper IPA
• Imperial Java Stout
• Irish Red Ale
• Freestyle Pilsner
• Black IPA

SanTan

• Devil’s Ale
• HopShock IPA
• Hefeweizen
• Mr. Pineapple
• SunSpot Gold

Shock Top

• Belgium White
• Honeycrisp Apple Wheat
• Lemon Shandy

Sierra Nevada

• Pale Ale
• Torpedo
• Summerfest

Ska

• Modus Hoperandi
• Mexican Logger
• ESB
• True Blonde

Snake River

• Pale Ale
• Pako’s Eye-P-A
• Zonker Stout
• Lager
• OB-1
• Monarch Pilsner

Sun King

• Sunlight Cream Ale
• Wee Mac Scottish Ale
• Osiris Pale Ale
• Fistful of Hops
• Ring of Dingle
• Indian’s Lager

TailGate Beer

• Blacktop Blonde

Tallgrass

• Buffalo Sweat
• Halcyon Unfiltered Wheat
• 8-Bit Pale Ale
• Ethos IPA
• Velvet Rooster

Two Brothers

• Dog Days
• SideKick
• Outlaw

Uinta

• Hop Nosh IPA
• Wyld Pale Ale
• Ba Ba Black Lager

Widmer

• TBD

Woodchuck

• Amber

So, I will see you tomorrow!

Until next time
Bottoms up my friends!

The Beer Czar

Medal Winners for AmeriCAN Canned Beer Festival!!

This years 4th Annual Ameri-CAN Canned Beer Festival is right around the corner (this Saturday!). They just announced the winners for this years competition! Here is the list of the winners (check out all the Arizona Beers!!! Nice work Arizona!) (click here for all the Festival Info!)

You can watch the winners being announced here.....(or go below the video to see them listed).

2014">http://vimeo.com/94791981">2014 Ameri-Can Canned Craft Beer Fest Judging

from RealVu">http://vimeo.com/realvufilms">RealVu Films LLC on Vimeo.https://vimeo.com">Vimeo.>

 



India Pale Ale

Gold:  Modus, Ska Brewing
Silver:  Happy Camper IPA, Santa Fe Brewing
Bronze:  Solis IPA, Mike Hess Brewing

American Pale Ale
Gold:  Lumberyard IPA, Lumberyard Brewing
Silver:  Knotty Pine, Lumberyard Brewing
Bronze:  Hop Knot, Four Peaks Brewing

English Pale Ale
Gold:  Lumberyard Red Ale, Lumberyard Brewing
Silver:  ESB, Ska Brewing
Bronze:  8^th Street Pale Ale, Four Peaks Brewing

Wheat Ale
Gold:  Hefeweizen, SanTan Brewing
Silver:  El Hefe Speaks, DC Brau Brewing
Bronze: EOS Hefeweizen, Nebraska Brewing

Stout & Porter
Gold:  Double Brown Stout, Deep Ellum Brewing
Silver:  Penn Quarter Porter, DC Brau Brewing
Bronze:  Buffalo Sweat, Tallgrass Brewing

Amber & Brown
Gold: G’Kights, Oskar Blues Brewing
Silver:  Kilt Lifter, Four Peaks Brewing
Bronze:  OB-1, Snake River Brewing

Gold / Blonde / Pilsner & Light Lager

Gold:  Claritas, Mike Hess Brewing
Silver:  The Tradition, DC Brau Brewing
Bronze:  Trout Slayer, Big Sky Brewing

Fruit Beer
Gold: Summer Solstice, Anderson Valley
Silver:  Mr. Pineapple, SanTan Brewing
Bronze: Hell or High Watermelon, 21^st Amendment Brewery

Specialty Beer
Gold: Black Thunder, Austin Beerworks
Silver: Monk’s Blood, 21^st Amendment Brewery
Bronze: Rye IPA, Black Market Brewing


Congrats to all the winners!!!


This years festival is just a few days away! If you are still trying to figure out transpiration, check out this smoking deal from Hoppymoto himself at Arizona Brewery Tours, let him worry about the driving, and get yourself a little something extra at the festival! Check out his deal here.....

 

 Hope to see you all there! If you see me there, please, come up and introduce yourself, I would love to meet you!

See you Saturday!

Until then
Bottoms up my friends!

The Beer Czar!

Have a festive, but safe Cinco de Mayo.

Its Cinco de Mayo folks, and I just wanted to take the time to say that I hope you have a safe, and happy Cinco de Mayo! Just remember, plan ahead, and make arrangements if you plan on drinking more then a few drinks this evening, be it beer, tequila, or well, I guess that's all you are likely to be drinking this evening. So please, take a cab, designate a friend (always nice to have a pregnant party goer along with you!), take a bus, just do something. If you find yourself stuck somewhere, too drunk to drive, and no one to call, please call "Tipsy Tow". This is a service offered by AAA. They will take you, and your car up to 10 miles. They don't take reservations (because this is a last resort, and you should have planned ahead!).

You can reach them at 1-800-AAA-HELP (800-222-4357).
It is available starting at 6pm, through 6am tomorrow morning.
It is free up to 10 miles, anything over 10 miles, you can expect to pay standard towing rate.
You can also call it for a friend.

I would rather not be reading about you in the paper tomorrow! Have a great evening folks, be safe, be smart, and be happy! Drunk driving is absolutely avoidable, and there is zero excuse to do it, don't be a d-bag, be smart.

Here is a list of some local cab companies, and their dispatch phone numbers....

Discount Cab............602-910-4800
Yellow Cab...............602-714-9348
Apache Taxi.............480-804-1000
AAA Yellow Cab.....480-966-8377
Taxi Del Sol.............602-393-3333
Speedy Taxi..............602-730-7056
Valley Cab...............602-515-9962


Until next time
Bottoms up my friends!

The Beer Czar

Great beer, great cause!

I just received this press release, and I wanted to share it with you all, so, here is a copy of the release.

If you have any more questions about this, drop me a line, and I will do what I get to get them answered for you.



The Pints for Pennies Fundraiser

The Pints for Pennies Fundraiser, benefiting the Boys and Girls Clubs of the East Valley to launch, May 12-18, 2014

 

Phoenix, AZ (May1, 2014) — With a goal to collectively sell 10,000 pints of beer, five east valley breweries are teaming up during American Craft Beer Week to raise awareness and money to benefit the Boys and Girls Clubs of the East Valley.  Participating breweries include SanTan Brewing, Arizona Wilderness, The Perch, Huss Brewing & Desert Eagle Brewery.

 

American Craft Beer Week runs for one week each May, this year it’s from May 12-18. This is a time of celebration among brewers and beer lovers across the country; it’s an exciting time for brewers to express unified enthusiasm and to demonstrate craft beer camaraderie through collaborations. In 2013, breweries in all 50 states organized a total of 1,269 events in celebration of American Craft Beer Week – that’s a lot of beer celebrating!

 

“Breweries are supported by their communities; they’re an extension of the people who support them. The Boys & Girls Clubs represent the community and their efforts change the lives of the children that will one day be the leaders of our communities. For us at Arizona Wilderness, it’s a no brainer to support them,” said Jonathan Buford, owner and brewer at Arizona Wilderness Brewing Company.

 

During American Craft Beer Week, May 12-18, 2014, anytime patrons purchase a pint of beer, the breweries will donate a penny. It’s that simple. So, be sure to stop by one or all of the participating breweries and raise a glass to Arizona craft beer, community and philanthropy.

 

 

 

About the Boys & Girls Clubs of the East Valley

Many children have no adult supervision after school. Studies have shown that the hours between 3 and 8 p.m. are the hours that most kids are likely to get involved with crimes, be victims of crime or engage in other risky behavior. The Boys & Girls Clubs provide an alternative to the dangers of the street with stimulating activities that help build character, self-esteem, values and skills. Visit www.clubzona.org for more information about the Boys & Girls Clubs of the East Valley.

 

 

 

Again, if you have any questions, drop me a line, and I will get you the answers you are looking for!

 

Thanks!

 

Until next time

Bottoms up my friends

 

The Beer Czar