Archive for August, 2007

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks to everyone who drove from near and far for the Dogfish Head dinner last night at Windows on the Park. We had folks from Saluda, Tryon, Charlotte—wow! We even celebrated a birthday.

Devin Arloski, above, spoke briefly before each course and gave us all the scoop on the completely innovative craziness that makes up the DFH portfolio. Those Girls truly outdid themselves and Devin gave big props saying that this was one of the best pairings he’d ever experienced with his beers and he does 30-40 dinners a year. Asheville, be proud! The Raison D’Extra was a real treat with the decadent carrot cake. We know many have never had the chance to sip an 18% abv beer. (Sip being the key word there.)

We also got the low-down on why Black & Blue never made it to NC. Which was interesting since we’ve not heard anything from the Overreaction Department lately. We knew it a label approval issue, but we were under the (wrong) impression that it had something to do with the abv testing higher than what was printed. No such thing! The ABC actually denied it because the dude on the label has a black and blue eye, so it was deemed inappropriate. Who knew?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Image: Dogfish Head

 

 

 

 

 

Finally, an alternative to the drab and dwindling Cheers airport restaurants and the Budweiser taprooms! Sweetwater Brewing Company, from Atlanta, has opened the Sweetwater Draft House & Brewpub for travelers passing through the Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. The restaurant is located in Concourse B and is the first Sweetwater brewpub to be opened.

We think this is a great example of marketing saavy—give your locals a place to hang out in the gargantuan airport and introduce your brews to those passing through.

Source: AJC.com / Image: Sweetwater Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yesterday was, without at doubt, one of the best days in business ever. This is what we live for—this is what it’s all about! If you missed it, we don’t know what to say. If you came, we thank you. It was truly ridiculous fun having both Lee Chase (far left) and Sean Wilson (far right) pouring in-store to benefit Friends of Blue Ridge Parkway. And most of our local brewers were there, too. Seriously, could it get any better than that?

So now that the news is out there, let us share with you: Our Pop The Cap friend, Sean Wilson, is opening a brewery in Durham called Fullsteam. His brewer is Chris Davis (second from right). Lee Chase, former head brewer of Stone Brewing, will be involved as a consultant. North Carolina is quickly becoming a major contender on the national beer scene.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After the little store event, Drew (top) at French Broad Brewery hosted us for a brewers’ dinner where we could finally breathe and enjoy the always delicious 12 Bones Smokehouse. (Thank you, Sabra and Tom.) We had our local brewers/breweries sample their beers for Sean and Lee. We truly had the warm fuzzies seeing the entire beer community all together in one fine place. Tony Kiss helped celebrate, as well as James from the Asheville Beer Blog and Bob Townsend, editor of Southern Brew News and beer writer for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Rounding out the gang were folks from Highland, Pisgah, Friends of the Blue Parkway and Carl with the upcoming Wedge Gallery brewery.

Courtesy of our dear friend, Becca, we read this story from last week’s New York Times about Belgian beer, specifically the oh-so-elusive category of the Belgian Pale Ale.

There is no category, strictly speaking, of Belgian pale ales. But the Belgians make a lot of beers that defy categorization. We gathered 23 that may not have a whole lot in common except that they are excellent summer quenchers.

Though colors range from a warm gold to copper, all are on the pale side of the spectrum. Some have a provocative spiciness, while others are a mite hoppy, or even a bit sour.

But what unites the best of these beers under our hodgepodge category is that they not only are dry and refreshing, they are stimulating.

Source: NYTimes.com

UPDATES: There are still tickets for both events coming up on Saturday and Monday!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Join us in-store tomorrow for Fullsteam Ahead: West Meets East with Sean Wilson of Pop The Cap and Lee Chase, former head brewer of Stone Brewing to benefit Friends of the Blue Ridge Parkway. $10/pp in advance via Paypal—$15/pp at the door. (We are sad to report that Randall the Enamel Animal won’t be making it. He is under the weather.) [Get your tickets here via Paypal/Pop The Cap]

 

 

 

 

 

Also, don’t forget The Dogfish Days of Summer at Windows on the Park on Monday. Six courses, six brews, all fun. $60/pp and please call 252-2920 for reservations.