#craft-beer

#craft-beer

If you're someone who prefers drinking big and brash barrel-aged stouts, Hopleaf's Stephanie Brennan recommends seeking out a bottle of Barrel-Aged Abraxas from Perennial Artisan Ales. The brewery's seasonal Abraxas imperial stout is made with cinnamon sticks, cacao nibs, vanilla beans, and ancho chilis, creating a hugely complex, rich-tasting beer. However, if you're lucky, you might be able to get your hands on one of Perennial's rare barrel-aged editions.

Craft beer has always been about creativity and community, but when it teams up with rock music, it becomes something truly special. In this post, we'll explore some of the most iconic collaborations between craft breweries and legendary bands, highlighting how these unique brews reflect the spirit of rock culture. ## The Rise of Band-Inspired Brews As craft beer continues to dominate the beverage landscape, breweries are increasingly looking to popular culture for inspiration. Band-inspired beers have become a staple, and for good reason. They not only attract fans of the music but also tap into the stories, values, and identities that these bands represent.

John Molson founded Canada's oldest brewery on the banks of the St. Lawrence River in Montreal in 1786. Ever since, the Molson brewers have been passionate about brewing beer for Canadians to enjoy.

The DNA of a good dive bar isn't necessarily its menu, but its feel. It should be well-worn, the vinyl on the stools crackling like a dry lake bed on the verge of a rip. The soundtrack is familiar and at a volume that muffles nearby table conversation. The lighting is low, augmented by ambient string lights and flashes from arcade games. Drinks should be cheap. Yukon Tavern in Sellwood is a couple of those things, and more.

Never heard of "the Bridge District"? The newly christened neighborhood is a development in Anacostia near the eastern foot of the Frederick Douglass Bridge, and this new taproom from Atlas Brew Works, where you can sip microbrews and snack on pizza and wings, is among its first occupants. The facility also doubles brewing capacity for the DC-born producer, which makes craft beers such as Ponzi IPA and Bullpen Pilsner.

Cyclists and music enthusiasts have a standing invitation every Tuesday at Hapa's Creekside in Downtown San Jose. Located at 59 Barack Obama Boulevard near the SAP Center, this weekly gathering encourages people to ride their bikes for a rewarding 2-for-1 deal on beers. The event kicks off with food service at 4 p.m. from Traveler by Chef Lou, offering a range of tasty options to fuel the evening.

Colorado National Monument in Grand Junction, Colo., is an awe-inspiring canyon boasting scenery any traveler would be lucky to soak in. It's also, bafflingly, crowd-free. "People tend to head straight for the Grand Canyon, or maybe Arches or Zion national parks," says Adam Kinsey, owner and founder of Grand Junction's Handlebar Tap House as well as the new WestCo Brewing. The canyon boasts a serenity you simply won't find at the Grand Canyon, with its steady flow of tourists.

With the move to our new facility, we have been able to ramp up our production with the additional space,

Whether you're on a mission to road trip to the best breweries in every state or you just like the idea of being a regular at your local taproom, there are ways to get the most out of your experience. Visiting a brewery is its own adventure. While you might go to a bar just to throw a couple back or watch the big game, a brewery has more education - in a fun way - on tap if you want to take advantage, and you should.

Having been regulars at the bar for years, they were eager to start their new business venture. My husband and I always thought that as a retirement gig, hospitality was always something we'd think about, Tricia, a local Fremont teacher, told this news organization. We were just coming out of COVID, things were opening up and you were allowed to go outside. We thought, What an opportunity to get into something we knew well.'

From its humble beginnings in a strip mall to boasting one of the largest brewery tasting rooms in the country at 25,000 square feet, AleSmith has continually been a local favorite for over 30 years. It's been consistently ranked in the top 10 list of the best brewers on RateBeer, a beer rating website with millions of beer-loving members from around the world. And to this day, craft beer experts rank an AleSmith beer as one of the best of the year.

We're surviving, not thriving. We'd love to turn that into thriving, he added on the latest episode of the Brewbound Podcast. We're trying to get to next year. That's the standard answer, Arthur explained. Next year will be our 20th year in business. So it's a pretty big milestone in terms of continuity or continuation. So [we're] definitely looking forward. What we're trying to do is really establish the right size and scale for the brewery.

Paint and Pints: 6-8 p.m. Dec. 3, Gilman Brewing Co., 912 Gilman St., Berkeley. Sip craft beer, paint something festive and mingle with friends. $25. eventbrite.com Brewery Yoga: 6 p.m. Dec. 3, Woodhouse Blending & Brewing, 119 Madrone St., Santa Cruz. Treat yourself for getting over halfway through the week with this vinyasa flow session, then stay for the beer and community. $18. eventbrite.com

Last call has come for a beloved, nearly four-decade-old Oregon brewery founded in part by three former Nike executives. Oregon Brewing Company, the parent company of Rogue Ales & Spirits, filed for Chapter 7 liquidation proceedings in the state's federal bankruptcy court this week. The Monday bankruptcy filing follows the craft beer and spirits maker's abrupt shutdown of all its brewing and restaurant locations across Oregon, according to local news reports.

Tucked away in south-central Washington, about 145 miles southeast of Seattle, the Yakima Valley stretches across fertile farmland framed by rolling hills, basalt ridges, and the winding Yakima River. Anchored by the city of Yakima and encompassing towns like Sunnyside, Zillah, and Selah, the region is best known as the nation's hop capital, producing more than 70 percent of U.S. hops.

"Making great beer is the starting point to being a craft brewery, especially in the Bay Area. It's all those other things that you do that are the differentiators. For us, beer is awesome, and we love talking about the beer, but we love talking about the community piece of it, our neighbors, our friends, our allies, all those things, just as much, if not more, as the liquid itself,"

I'm really proud of him, Holly said. He's always been super supportive of me owning the brewery. He raised me to do whatever I wanted to do. We have a woman-owned brewery. Even though he lives in San Diego, I ship it to him or I drive it back home to him and we drink it together. He likes to hand it out to his veteran friends. He's really proud. It's really special.

The championship finale of the Beer City Half Northern California Series will feature $5,000 in prize money and a full day of fresh beer in San Ramon on Sunday, Oct. 26. Sunday's festivities start early, as runners will take off at 8:30 a.m. to participate in a half marathon, 10K and a 5K along scenic routes around the 2.5-mile loop on Annabel Lake and parts of the 32-mile Iron Horse Trail. The winner of the half marathon will receive something known as the Golden Growler. Runners will cross the finish line and head straight to the Beer City Festival, which calls itself a "traveling beer circus" that is spending the weekend in San Ramon showcasing the East Bay's top craft beers, live music, games and food.

The largest annual gathering of American brewers took place Oct. 9-11 as thousands poured into the Denver Convention Center for the 39th edition of the Great American Beer Festival, during which 250 judges, including this author, sampled a collective 8,315 beers and ciders from around the U.S. to award 347 medals to 273 breweries in 108 beer categories, six cider categories, plus a Pro-Am Competition and Collaboration Competition.

There are many reasons to be wary of generative AI these days, from the unsettling way people use it to duplicate the likenesses of dead celebrities to the lawsuits connecting AI chatbots to the deaths of multiple people. Even as some AI boosters advocate for new uses for the technology, skeptics debate the jobs AI is unlikely to attempt. You might think, for instance, that tasting food or beverages is something that requires a human palate. And you'd probably be correct - a recent controversy over a craft beer competition notwithstanding.

While craft beer breweries in the U.S. have been on a slight decline, the industry's creativity and ingenuity have helped beer giants like Anheuser-Busch grow their portfolios while allowing independent breweries to truly shine. Apart from being independent and creative, craft beer breweries have also been applauded for their sustainable, eco-friendly practices like using recycled packaging materials, repurposing spent grains, and exploiting renewable energy to fuel the brewing process.

And the big beer companies, which built or acquired smaller craft breweries during the industry's heyday, are now jettisoning some of those brands. Last year, Molson Coors sold four of its craft beer companies to a cannabis company, Tilray Brands. Brewers and others in the industry say they're in the midst of a broader shakeout that will probably push more smaller breweries over the edge.

too much pressure in this industry

Side Gate Brewery & Beer Garden is celebrating its 4th anniversary on Saturday, October 11, 2025, with 2 fantastic beer releases, new merchandise, live music and finger-licking good food. Join us! FRESH BEERS: The Hopside Down - a Hazy IPA to ring in the new season of Stranger Things Side Gate 4th Anniversary IPA - an IPA made in collaboration with Toyota Pavilion at Concord's 50th Anniversary and Visit Concord

AleSmith is celebrating its 30th anniversary with momentum behind new products in and out of beer and a growing contract brewing business. In this episode of the Brewbound Podcast, AleSmith president Brandon Richards shares how the San Diego craft brewery has evolved to meet drinkers' needs with new products while fortifying its business by brewing for others. Richards explains how the Party Tricks IPA line and addition of Sun Path fruited lager line have driven growth for the company.

Since the advent of the craft beer revolution, great breweries have popped up in every corner of the United States, with almost 10,000 breweries operating in the country as of 2023. That's up from only around 90 in the '70s, when macrobrews like Budweiser and Coors were at their most dominant. Anheuser-Busch and Molson Coors still rule beer production in the country, with both brands controlling a little more than half of the U.S. market.

What makes Vietnam's bar scene so special right now is its embrace of local ingredients, new craft spirits and innovative pairings with contemporary Vietnamese cuisine. Molecular mixology and no-alcohol options are also on the rise.

SAN LEANDRO - The shutdown of 21st Amendment Brewery, a Bay Area craft beer leader, will erase dozens of jobs in the Bay Area, affecting workers in two cities in the region, according to an official state government filing. The brewery intends to eliminate a total of 76 jobs in the Bay Area, the company stated in a WARN notice it filed with the state Employment Development Department.