Earlier this month I spent a weekend in Austin for Fun Fun Fun Fest, where I was able to spend some time in the very cool Black Star Co-op brewpub and also bring back a few beers that I hadn’t seen in Dallas. One of the Austin-made brews that really…
One of the most exciting bits of beer-related news I’ve received in the last year came in an interview with Guinness brewmaster Fergal Murray at Trinity Hall in March as he was touring the country making the case for celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with his products. Intrigued by outstanding Beer…
We’re coasting into the best time of the year, beer-wise, with winter and holiday seasonals and luscious stouts starting to edge out summer session beers on retail shelves and tap walls. At Hophead HQ, we’ve already nearly finished off our first (but likely not last) six-pack of Anchor’s 2010 Christmas…
To the three people on the waiting list behind me for Park Lane Whole Foods’ last six-pack of Saint Arnold Divine Reserve 10 in hopes that I wouldn’t show up to claim it, sorry. I hope you were able to find it elsewhere. And now I understand why the Houston…
One of my purchases during Central Market’s Brewtopia deal (when you could get 25 percent off beer purchases of $25 or more) was Dubuisson Scaldis Belgian Ale, ounce-for-ounce one of the most expensive beers I’ve ever bought. But I had a feeling it would be good, considering how great Scaldis…
Last night, as part of the three-pub cooperative Avery push we mentioned Monday, the Meddlesome Moth cracked open three kegs from Avery’s Demons of Ale series. The three beers in the series are all over 16 percent ABV and are not cheap. But given how uncommon they are, at least…
This week’s special Avery events at the Libertine Bar, The Common Table and the Meddlesome Moth are putting a special emphasis on the Colorado brewery’s Salvation Belgian-style golden ale. The Libertine and Common Table have already offered up food pairings especially made to go with the beer, and the Moth…
All photos by Jesse HugheyThough you may not have known it, as the brewery’s products are carried by fewer than 20 retailers and pubs in the area, Boulder, Colorado’s Twisted Pine Brewery has made its way into North Texas. In Dallas, you can find Twisted Pine brews at Pogo’s, Trinity…
Held in the store’s upstairs classroom kitchen, Friday night’s “Stone Brewery Gastropub” at Central Market was more cooking class than gastropub beer dinner. It provided such intriguing samples of food and Stone beers that it was impossible not to go downstairs and immediately head to the store’s beer cooler in…
Jesse HugheyOur cloning technology is clearly in the early stages of development.This Sunday as part of Central Market’s Brewtopia beer marketing drive, the Dallas location is offering a homebrewing workshop from 3 to 5:30 p.m. The class is only $10 and offers the opportunity to purchase Central Market’s homebrew kits…
Last week, the Boston Beer Co. sent along a free sample mixed 12-pack, the company’s Harvest Collection, which includes the new Samuel Adams Harvest Pumpkin Ale along with a few other varieties and a couple bottles of the flagship Boston Lager. Also included in the package was a loaf of…
Bavarian attire strongly encouraged but not required at Addison Oktoberfest.With Oktoberfest and other fall styles hitting shelves and taps and a slew of beer-related events on the horizon (not to mention the chance to try deep-fried beer), it is starting to be a good time of the year to be…
Great news for fans of Fort Worth’s Rahr & Sons Brewing Company this week, as the brewery is just about ready to open up to the public again for its raucously fun brewery tours. The news comes more than six months after February’s snowstorm collapsed the brewery roof, temporarily halting…
I’ve been totally jazzed about telling all you drinkers, girl and otherwise, about how bad ass Geeks Who Drink on Mondays at the Barley House is. It is just 2 weeks old, but it is outstanding. Geeks Who Drink, for those who don’t know, is an organized pub quiz for…
In case you haven’t read this blog, other food blogs, turned on the television or driven on Central Expressway in the last month, let us remind you that this is Hatch chile season, with peppers from Hatch, New Mexico, hitting grocery shelves and restaurant kitchens. The recipes for chiles, roasted…
You wouldn’t know it from the life-sapping heat here in Dallas, but Oktoberfest is less than a month away. Already, Oktoberfest beers are starting to pop up on retail shelves and bar taps. As they did last year, Magic Hat from Vermont kindly sent three sample beers from the company’s…
India Pale Ales, or IPAs, have become a favorite beer style for craft brewers looking to experiment with flavors. The beers, which originated in Great Britain in the late 18th century for shipping to India, are defined by their elevated hop levels, making them especially popular with hop-happy West Coast…
Temps have been over 100 degrees for days, and there’s no relief in sight. No relief, that is, unless you count a cold glass of beer. As mentioned last time we looked at summer thirst-quenchers, crisp pilsners, IPAs and farmhouse ales are much more appealing during the dog days of…
Temps have been over 100 degrees for days, and there’s no relief in sight. No relief, that is, unless you count a cold glass of beer. As mentioned last time we looked at summer thirst-quenchers, crisp pilsners, IPAs and farmhouse ales are much more appealing during the dog days of…
A recent New York magazine article got me thinking about saison, the Belgian farmhouse ale style that was once considered an endangered species of beer but has in recent years become a rather hot craft-brew trend. I already knew that originally they were a relatively crisp and dry low-alcohol beer,…
Last week was spent building tolerance: It was the annual week of the Dallas Observer Music Awards. The tolerance of which I speak really has nothing to do with music, but of crowds, heat and hooch.Allow me to elaborate: The DOMAXXII (the 22nd year of the DOMAs) showcase took place…
Sometimes there’s some kind of theme to this column, like last week’s tie-in to Belgian Independence Day or previous weeks’ explorations of beers tried on a trip to Alaska. Other times, new or newly available brews are fodder for a Hophead column. Then there are times when I simply write…
